Bristol Borough Disciplines “Whistleblower” Police Officer Despite Calls by Mayor to Table

Bristol Borough Council voted to discipline police officer Ritchie Webb despite community backlash and a call by Mayor Frank W. Peranteau Sr. to table the motion.

In what became a meeting centered on a war of words, allegations and cross allegations made on behalf of Webb and against him, Council approved the disciplinary action.

Before the vote, some Bristolians publicly supported Webb, calling him a hero. They also cited his previous clashes and lawsuits with the Borough surrounding “official misconduct” by former disgraced officer Sam Anderson. 

The victim in that case, Joanne Cipressi spoke during the meeting, voicing her strong support for Webb.

She cited his past whistleblowing efforts which led to the Borough paying out about $1.25 million in settlements to Cipressi and Webb in 2013/14.

This reporter covered those allegations and subsequent lawsuits for LevittownNow.com in 2013 and 2014. 

Webb, who has been on medical leave from the department for over a year now, reportedly made allegations against the department and Chief of Police Joe Moors essentially calling his leadership corrupt in the summer of  2023.

Moors was subsequently cleared by the Bucks County District Attorney’s office of all allegations later that  same year.

In recent months, Webb has reportedly made similar accusations aimed at Moors, the police department, and at district court’s operations. The details of those allegations were circulated on social media, however, this publication could not confirm Webb was the author of the document since he does not own a Meta account, and therefore, decided for legal reasons it could not be published publicly.

Peranteau requested Council to table the motion citing potential legal ramifications and “costs” to “taxpayers.”

“I am asking Council tonight to table this investigation — not to protect anyone from scrutiny, but to protect this Borough from the serious and costly legal exposure that is building with every step Council takes in the wrong direction. Bristol Borough is already in a legally precarious position. If this investigation continues on its current course, the taxpayers of this community will pay for it — in litigation costs, in damages, and in attorneys fees that could have been entirely avoided.”**

The mayor and the Borough’s labor attorney, Patrick Harvey, had heated exchanges on a number of issues.

Credit: YouTube Screenshot

Harvey said the move to discipline Webb was based on several factors, namely, making baseless charges and causing false impressions with the posting of an unofficial document in regards to the payment of parking tickets in which judicial misconduct was alleged; refusal to appear or participate in two official investigations; failure to explain over $5000.00 in damages to a police vehicle that occurred outside the borough and in 2025, defying orders from the chief of police, and any and all communications from Bristol officials, were among the issues cited.

Harvey outlined Webb’s lack of response to a workers’ compensation return to work review, noting that his attorneys cooperated with the requests. He lastly said Webb’s previous allegations of misconduct by police officials were investigated by county authorities and, he said, investigators had found no basis for the complaints.

Peranteau said for all intents and purposes, having the chief of police lead an internal investigation into allegations centered on his leadership of the department is ludicrous.

Webb’s wife attended the meeting, however, he did not appear and has made no direct contact comments on the matter since.

Councils approval of the motion ended Webb’s days as a cop in Bristol Borough.

**The mayor’s full statement on why the vote should have been tabled, can be found at this link.