Admitted Pa. cop killer could get death penalty

The baby-faced cop killer who blurted a tearful apology to the slain officer's widow in court could face the death penalty after being convicted of first-degree murder on Thursday.A jury found John Lewis, 23, had intent to kill when he fired at Philadelphia police Officer Chuck Cassidy at a doughnut shop in 2007. Lewis, who had been committing a string of increasingly violent crimes, was robbing the Dunkin' Donuts at gunpoint when Cassidy unknowingly interrupted him.The panel returned its verdict a week after Lewis entered a surprise guilty plea to a general charge of murder following days of jury selection. The penalty phase, to determine whether Lewis gets life in prison or the death penalty, begins Friday.Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey praised the jurors' decision, but said the verdict was bittersweet."Unfortunately it doesn't bring Chuck Cassidy back," Ramsey said outside the courthouse. "That's a void that will never be filled."Lewis' mother declined to comment as she left the courthouse. Attorneys for both sides remain under a gag order.Cassidy, 54, a veteran officer and father of three, died a day after being shot Oct. 31, 2007. Jurors were charged with deciding whether the crime qualified as first-degree murder, which would put the death penalty on the table, or second-degree murder, which carries a mandatory life sentence. The jury deliberated for about 2 1/2 hours Thursday.Before deliberations, prosecutors argued for a first-degree conviction, replaying surveillance tape from the store that showed Lewis stepping toward Cassidy, taking aim, and firing.Assistant District Attorney Edward Cameron said Lewis had been interrupted by customers during other robberies but did not shoot them because they posed no threat. Cassidy was different, said Cameron."It boils down to that video," he said. "There can be no doubt of the defendant's intent that day."Defense attorney Michael Coard said the slaying was second-degree murder because the encounter between the men took just two seconds _ meaning the shooting could not have been "willful, deliberate and premeditated," the requisites for a first-degree conviction. Second-degree murder is an unplanned death that occurs during a crime.Coard said the prosecution's own eyewitnesses used words like "jittery," "surprised" and "startled" in describing Lewis' demeanor when the officer arrived."This was nothing more than a panicky reaction," said Coard.Lewis was captured six days after the shooting, hiding out at a Miami homeless shelter.Thursday's verdict capped a week's worth of courtroom drama that started Nov. 12 with Lewis' unexpected guilty pleas to murder, robbery and other charges. Subsequent days included sometimes tearful testimony from his victims, followed by the officer's widow appearing on the witness stand Wednesday.In the midst of her testimony, Lewis stunned the court with an outburst."I apologize, Mrs. Cassidy," he said, crying at the defense table.Still, Coard had exhorted the jury Thursday not to be swayed by the emotional testimony and evidence _ including the officer's bloody shirt and badge _ presented during the trial."You are outraged at the death of a police officer, and you should be," Coard said. "(But) what does the sympathy factor have to do at all with whether or not this is first-degree or second-degree?"Cameron, holding the weapon used to shoot Cassidy, said a handgun loaded with ammunition that included a hollow-point bullet showed Lewis' intent was "different than an ordinary robbery.""It sends a message _ you resist, you die," the prosecutor said. "This is the defendant's intent."