Man convicted under new cop-assault law

Under a new, tougher state law, a Philadelphia man was found guilty Wednesday night in Montgomery County Court of assaulting a police officer.

Leon Bailado, 33, of Shelbourne Street near Devereaux Avenue in Lawndalet, was convicted by a jury of shooting Abington Police Officer Robert Davis. Bailado, who was also charged with firearm and other offenses, was sentenced to 20 to 40 years in prison.

Davis and two other officers answered a domestic call on Dec. 22, 2008, at a Glenside home where the grandparents of Bailado's children lived. Bailado's girlfriend was hiding in the house when she called 9-1-1 while he tried to enter armed with a gun.

He had threatened to kill her earlier that night, holding a weapon to her head and saying: "This is the last night that you are going to live. If you try to run, I'll shoot you. If you call the police, I'll have a shoot-out," according to Montgomery County prosecutors.

Bailado refused to put down his gun when confronted by cops, and they began to exchange gunfire. Davis was struck in the left leg and Bailado was shot multiple times.

The 2008 law, passed after a spate of violent incidents against police, made assault on a law-enforcement officer a first-degree felony. It was enacted six days after Bailado shot Davis, who has returned to active duty.

- Regina Medina