Gunman Who Pledged Allegiance To ISIS After Shooting Philly Cop Sentenced To Almost 50 Years In Prison

Edward Archer, the gunman who ambushed and shot Philadelphia Police Officer Jesse Hartnett in the name of ISIS received a maximum sentence of nearly 50 years in prison. 

The above Philadelphia Police photo shows Archer shooting at Officer Hartnett's patrol car and the below photo is of P/O Hartnett. 

You can read Chris Palmer’s piece on the sentence and trial in the Philadelphia Inquirer via the below link:

http://www.philly.com/philly/news/crime/edward-archer-sentencing-isis-police-shooting-philadelphia-jesse-hartnett-20180514.html

You can also read my Counterterrorism magazine on the shooting via the below link:

http://www.pauldavisoncrime.com/2016/09/a-warrior-cop-shot-in-philadelphia-my.html 

Warrior Cop Named 'Man Of The Year': Ambushed Philadelphia Police Officer Jesse Hartnett Grateful, 8 Surgeries Later

Audrea Cline-Thomas and David Chang at nbcphiladelphia.com offers a piece and video interview with Philadelpha Police Officer Jesse Hartnett.

A Philadelphia Police officer who chased down a gunman after being shot during an ambush attack earlier this year was honored by law enforcement officials from around the world Wednesday night.

Officer Jesse Hartnett received the “Man of the Year” award during the annual National Police Defense Foundation (NPDF) Awards Dinner in Howard Beach, New York. Hartnett spoke to NBC10 about the honor during his first on-camera interview since the shooting. 

“It’s a big deal and it’s nice to be recognized,” Hartnett told NBC10’s Aundrea Cline-Thomas in an exclusive interview. “Especially after something tragic like that.” 

On January 7, Hartnett, 33, was shot by a gunman in an ambush attack while he was sitting inside his patrol car. Despite being struck in the arm and bleeding heavily, he chased after the suspect and returned fire. The gunman, whom police identified as 30-year-old Edward Archer, was captured a few blocks away. 

You can read the rest of the piece and watch the video interivew via the below link:

http://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/Jesse-Hartnett-Philadelphia-Police-Ambush-Shooting-Award-Interview--378204551.html 

Reporter Ride Along In South Philly

I went on a reporter ride along last night with a Philadelphia Police Officer assigned to the 3rd District in South Philadelphia.

On assignment for The Journal of Counterterrorism & Homeland Security International, I spent the evening with Officer Lynne A. Zirilli.

In light of the ambush shooting of Philadelphia Police Officer Jesse Hartnett by a man claiming to have committed attempted murder in support of radical Islam, I'm working on a piece on the inherent danger police officers face while on patrol. Police officers are the first line of defense in the war on terrorism.

More than ever, patrol officers need to be vigilant. While out on patrol, they are a highly visible target that attracts violent criminals and terrorists. Patrol officers are tasked, as it states in the Philadelphia Police Department's Mission Statement, to "fight and prevent crime, the fear of crime, and terrorism."

Officer Zirilli responded to a good number of calls last night, ranging from a scuffle in a fast food restaurant, to car accidents and armed robberies.

Over the years, I've gone on a good number of reporter ride alongs and I've learned two things; police officers do not receive the proper respect they deserve, and they are not paid nearly enough to do this kind of work.

I'll post my magazine piece here when it is published.

Philadelphia Police Officer Says Shooter Said Nothing Before Ambushing Him

Joseph A. Slobodzian at the Philadelphia Inquirer reports on the testimony of Philadelphia Police Officer Jesse Hartnett (seen in the above photo), who was shot and wounded in an ambush.

Whatever motivated the gunman who seriously wounded Philadelphia Police Officer Jesse Hartnett in a volley of bullets, it remains a mystery to the officer of five years.

"I didn't hear him say anything," the 33-year-old officer, speaking publicly for the first time about his ordeal, told a Philadelphia Judge Thursday at a preliminary hearing for suspect Edward Archer.

Hartnett was shot multiple times while sitting in his parked police cruiser on Jan. 7. and investigators said Archer, 31, of Yeadon, confessed doing it "in the name of Islam."

But at the hearing before Municipal Court Judge Marsha H. Neifield, no additional information about the statement or any alleged religious motivation came out.

After the hour-long hearing, Neifield ordered Archer held on all charges, including attempted murder and aggravated assault, assaulting a law enforcement officer, several gun counts and receiving stolen property - the pistol prosecutors said he obtained from someone who stole it from a city police officer in September 2013.

You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:  

http://www.philly.com/philly/news/breaking/20160311_Hearing_set_for_man_charged_with_wounding_cop.html 

A Cop's Cop: Phiadelphia Police Officer Allegedly Shot By ISIS Supporter To Be Named Man Of The Year

Dana DiFilippo at the Philadelphia Daily News reports on the naming of a wounded Philly cop as the National Police Defense Foundation's Man of the Year.

A Philadelphia police officer who chased down his armed attacker even after he was shot three times will be honored by the National Police Defense Foundation as its Man of the Year.

Officer Jesse Hartnett, 33, was sitting in his patrol car on Jan. 7 in West Philadelphia when a gunman approached on foot and fired 13 times into the cruiser's lowered window at Hartnett.

As the gunman fled, Hartnett was able to chase him down, even though he'd caught several bullets in his left arm, and shoot his attacker in the buttocks.

Edward Archer, the alleged attacker, later swore allegiance to ISIS and is scheduled for a preliminary hearing March 10 on attempted murder charges.

"This is in recognition of [Hartnett's] heroic efforts in the performance of his duties," said Joseph Occhipinti, executive director of the New York-based National Police Defense Foundation. "He is truly a law enforcement professional who demonstrated professionalism and valor in spite of grave danger. He's a cop's cop."

You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:

http://mobile.philly.com/beta?wss=/philly/news&id=367695591 

FBI Director: Cop Shooter Loyal To ISIS Likely Acted Alone

Jeremy Roebuck at the Philadelphia Inquirer offers a piece on the FBI director's statement that the alleged shooter of a Philadelphia police officer and a confessed supporter of ISIS likely acted alone.

FBI Director James B. Comey said Thursday that investigators were not currently seeking any other suspects in last week's shooting of a Philadelphia police officer by a man who pledged allegiance to the Islamic State.

Comey said authorities had found nothing to suggest that confessed shooter Edward Archer was part of an organized terrorist cell or was planning any follow-up attack.

He downplayed the significance of an anonymous tip police received Saturday that Archer, 30, of Yeadon, might have worked with three other men whose religious beliefs were more radical.

"We're not seeking anybody else," Comey said. "We're going to look very hard to untangle this guy's entire life so we can understand what his motivations might have been."

You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:    

http://mobile.philly.com/beta?wss=/philly/news&id=365306011

FBI investigating Shooting Of Philadelphia Police Officer As Act Of Terrorism

Fox News offers a piece on the FBI investigating the attempted murder of Philadelphia Police Officer Jesse Hartnett as an act of terrorism.

The FBI is investigating the ambush shooting of a Philadelphia police officer last week as an act of terrorism, Director James Comey said Wednesday.

Comey was attending an event in Pittsburgh when he was asked to comment on the Philadelphia mayor’s indication the shooting may have just been a crime of violence. 

Comey indicated he couldn’t comment on what the mayor said, but that the agency was investigating the incident as an act of terrorism. 

He added that ISIS has been "crowd-sourcing terrorism," using social media to encourage violence and its message "tends to resonate with troubled souls."

On Sunday, police in Philadelphia said they were investigating a tip that a man charged in the ambush shooting of Officer Jesse Hartnett is connected to a radical group that may continue to pose a threat to officers.

You can read the rest of the piece and watch a news video clip via the below link:

http://www.foxnews.com/us/2016/01/13/fbi-investigating-shooting-philadelphia-police-officer-as-act-terrorism.html

Philly Female Tipster: Threat To Police Is Not Over

The Philadelphia Inquirer is reporting that according to a female tipster the threat to Philadelphia police officers continues even after the capture of the alleged shooter of Philly Police Officer Jesse Hartnett.

A woman approached a Philadelphia police officer anonymously Saturday night to warn that officers were in danger because three "radical" associates of confessed gunman Edward Archer's were at large.

Police officials, taking the tip seriously as they worked with federal authorities to verify it, ordered patrol officers to go out with partners until further notice.

Archer is charged with attempted murder and related crimes in the Thursday night ambush of Officer Jesse Hartnett, who was patrolling at 60th and Spruce Streets when a man dressed in a long white tunic rushed at his patrol car, firing more than a dozen bullets from a 9mm Glock at point-blank range. Hartnett, his arm fractured from three gunshot wounds and bleeding profusely, fired back, hitting his assailant once in the buttocks.

Police said the gunman, 30, confessed to the attack "in the name of Islam." The weapon he used had been stolen from another police officer's home.

The Philadelphia Police Counterterrorism Unit and the FBI were investigating allegations from the tipster that the man who shot Hartnett was associated with a small group of men with radical beliefs, and warned that "the threat to police is not over."

Specifically, she said there were three other men, more "radical" in their beliefs than Archer.

Police spokesman Lt. John Stanford said the department and federal agencies take such information seriously.

You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:

 

http://mobile.philly.com/beta?wss=/philly/news&id=364793161 

 

Note: The above photo of the ISIS-inspired shooter firing into Officer Hartnett's patrol car was released by the Philadelphia Police Department.  

Video of Shooting of Philadelphia Police Officer

You can watch the video of the shooting of a Philadelphia police officer by a man who claimed to have shot the cop in the name of Islam and a report on the shooter via the below link to Fox News:

http://video.foxnews.com/v/4693475155001/alleged-philadelphia-shooter-had-long-criminal-history/?#sp=show-clips

Note: The Philadelphia Police released the above photo.

Philadelphia Police: Gunman Who Ambushed And Shot Cop Pledged Allegiance To The Islamic State

The Philadelphia Inquirer offers a piece on the ambush and attempted murder of Philadelphia Police Officer Jesse Hartnett.

Hours after he shot a Philadelphia police officer with a stolen police firearm Thursday night, Edward Archer confessed to investigators that he had acted "in the name of Islam," authorities said.

"I follow Allah. I pledge my allegiance to the Islamic State, and that's why I did what I did," Archer told detectives, according to Homicide Capt. James Clark.

Investigators are still working to determine whether the 30-year-old Yeadon man had any ties to terrorist groups or whether he had acted alone.

Archer's mother said Friday that her son had been "hearing voices in his head" and needed medical help.

Friday afternoon, police and agents with the FBI's Terrorism Task Force searched her house in Yeadon and another location in West Philadelphia associated with Archer.

Investigators are scouring Archer's Internet activity to see if he may have had contact with ISIS members or other radical Islamic groups. A law enforcement source said late Friday that so far they had not found any indication that Archer had been in contact with known terrorism suspects.

You can read the rest of the piece via the below link:

http://mobile.philly.com/beta?wss=/philly/news&id=364624321 

Note: Philly Police Officer Jesse Hartnett is a hell of a cop! He was shot three times, yet he called in that he was shot, then left his car, gave pursuit and shot the guy in the ass. 

The above photo of Officer Jesse Hartnett was released by the Philadelphia Police Department.