Phila. police kill paroled felon in gunfight

Philadelphia police exchanged fire with and killed a paroled felon early yesterday, less then two months after Officer Patrick McDonald was killed during a similar confrontation.

Lamont Norman, 32, twice fired upon officers before he was killed in Strawberry Mansion.

Norman was being sought after he fled the same South Philadelphia half-way house that McDonald's killer had absconded from.

"This guy's history is violent," said police spokesman Lt. Frank Vanore. "He's got violent felony convictions, and we let him go early."

Keli Kishbaugh of the Department of Corrections said the matter was under review but would not say whether a formal investigation was launched.

Thursday night, shortly before midnight, three plain-clothes officers were investigating drug activity in the 1700 block of North Taney Street. Two officers were in a vehicle and one was on foot as they moved toward a suspect, Vanore said.

Shots were fired from the east side of Taney by Norman, who Vanore said was not the subject of investigation and it was unclear why he started shooting at police.

At least one officer returned fire as police started chasing Norman. A uniformed officer arrived as backup and Norman fired again at police, with officers returning fire again. Uninjured, Norman continued running.

Police followed him to an alley between the 1800 blocks of North Etting and North 27th Streets, where police called SWAT, Vanore said.

As the third confrontation unfolded, a SWAT officer fired, hitting Norman about an hour after the ordeal began. Norman was pronounced dead at the scene. A revolver - with all spent casings and no live rounds - was found nearby, Vanore said.

Norman is the 10th person killed this year by police.

In September, police fatally shot Daniel Giddings, who had gunned down McDonald during a routine traffic stop.

Giddings had escaped from the Community Corrections Center in South Philadelphia, just weeks before his fatal confrontation with McDonald.

That month, Norman escaped from the same facility, which is owned by the state Department of Corrections.

Vanore said Norman has a lengthy criminal record with 17 arrests that include charges of aggravated assault, burglary and robbery.

Kishbaugh said Norman served nearly five years for aggravated assault from 1995 through 2000.

A year later, she said, he returned on a robbery conviction out of Philadelphia and served less than his minimum sentence of 61/2 to 15 years when he was sent to the community center in April. He escaped Aug. 27.