Jeremy and Simone Mock, neighbors of Governor Josh Shapiro’s private residence in Abington Township, are shown in a video obtained and released by NBC10 today interacting with Pennsylvania State Police troopers in mid-October during their ongoing land dispute.
“As far as we understand it and as far as attorneys understand, our fence line…” the trooper says in the video.
“What documentation do you have? Lawyers don’t matter unless they’re here,” another voice, presumably Simone Mock, replies.
The Mocks filed a federal lawsuit on February 10 which involves the roughly $1 million in security upgrades at his private residence following the arson attack on the Governor’s Residence in Harrisburg in April. They are accusing the governor and his wife, Lori, of illegally occupying part of their yard to build an eight-foot security fence.
According to the lawsuit, the planned location of the fence is on the Mocks’ property “unlawfully”. The Shapiros filed a countersuit in which they asked a judge to declare that the property is theirs.
Senator Jarrett Coleman, chair of Senate Intergovernmental Operations Committee who has been part of the investigation into the security upgrades’ expenditures and oversight, was interviewed by NBC10.
“It looks like it’s using the state police in enforcing a civil matter,” Coleman told NBC10. “In the video that we’ve seen of the altercation, the state police officer begins the video by saying that everything’s being recorded. Why would the state police not provide us with the body cam footage that we know exists. And further, who is directing the state police not to provide the body cam that we know exists?”
In November, the committee announced that it was preparing to send subpoenas to Pennsylvania State Police and Abington Township for more specifics about the upgrades.
“This dispute over a small piece of the Shapiro’s backyard has been turned into a shameless political stunt by the neighbors and members of the Republican State Senate who are now attacking the Pennsylvania State Police and threatening, harassing and exploiting the Shapiro’s legitimate security issues,” the governor’s office wrote in a statement to NBC10 on Friday.
The video of the Mocks interacting with state troopers, as well as Senator Coleman’s interview, is below:
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Screengrab: NBC10