As cops argued, man bled at their feet

The groans of a wounded suspect and the screams of two bickering Philadelphia police officers are the subject of a blurry YouTube video - and now an Internal Affairs investigation.

The 59-second video - much of which is shrouded in darkness - captures a heated, profane exchange between, police said, a female sergeant from the 19th District (headquartered at 61st and Thompson) and a male Highway Patrol officer, moments after cops wounded Marcus Henderson, 35, in West Philadelphia, on Jan. 20.

"Don't tell me what to do! He's f------ shot! He's going to a hospital!" the sergeant shrieks, while the Highway Patrol officer yells that Henderson pointed a gun at his partner and adds, "I'm not telling you what to do! I'm telling you what happened!"

"It doesn't look good," said Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey. "We're concerned about it. It's probably a misunderstanding, but we're looking at it."

But Ramsey and other top brass are concerned about more than just the ugly dispute. Witnesses claimed yesterday that the arguing Highway Patrol officer kicked Henderson while he was on the ground bleeding and refused to allow his patrol car to be used to take Henderson to a hospital.

"The suspect was writhing around. It looked like he had been shot in his body, but he managed to get up on his knees," said a man whose brother filmed the YouTube video. Both asked to have their names withheld.

"The [Highway Patrol] cop runs up, kicks him and tells him to get the f--- down. Then he peeked under his shirt to see how injured he was."

The incident began shortly after 9 that evening, when Highway Patrol cops were called to investigate a report of gunshots on Callowhill Street near 58th.

They saw a car on Felton Street near Girard Avenue that matched a description given by a 9-1-1 caller, police said.

When the officers approached, three men jumped out of the vehicle and ran. Police say that one of the men was Henderson, who twice pointed a 9mm handgun at the cops.

Henderson, who has a history of drug convictions, according to court records, was wounded in the arm and torso. He was treated at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania, released, and charged with aggravated assault and related offenses.

Henderson is being held at the Curran-Fromhold Correction Facility until a Feb. 18 preliminary hearing.

"The first thing we heard was, he screamed he was shot," said Anton Boolling, a resident of nearby Stiles Street. "He asked for a towel. There was one cop with him, trying to keep him down."

The Highway Patrol officer was "speaking very vehemently to another, saying he ain't going in my car," said another witness, who also asked to remain anonymous.

One witness claimed that it had taken 40 minutes for an ambulance to arrive; others said it had been 15 minutes.

Internal Affairs Chief Inspector Anthony DiLacqua said investigators plan to interview witnesses this week. "We'll get to the bottom of it," he said. *

Staff writer Stephen Zook contributed to this report.