Off-duty Phila. police lieutenant attacked outside her home

An off-duty police lieutenant was allegedly doused with unknown liquid Monday morning by a stranger outside her home in the city's Overbrook Park section.

Lt. Jennifer Penn, who is assigned to the 17th Police District in South Philadelphia, was about to drive to work when an unidentified man carrying a plastic container inside a small black-plastic bag approached her at 6:19 a.m., police said.

A witness told police the man had been pacing nearby for 20 minutes, apparently waiting for Penn to leave her home in the 7300 block of Brentwood Road.

As Penn got into her car, the man doused her with a liquid, police said. The man doused her a second time before she was able to close the door. The man then fled.

Penn tried to follow the man in her car but lost track, police said. She reported a burning sensation to her eyes, face, and body, and was transported by a medic unit to Lankenau Hospital, where she was checked out and released.

The container and Penn's clothing were taken into evidence, and a detective said there was a faint odor of chlorine. The liquid was submitted for chemical analysis.

Police reported no arrest Tuesday.

In March, Penn's husband, a Philadelphia police officer, was shot in the back outside their house, allegedly by an unidentified assailant. He was critically wounded but survived. There has been no arrest in that case.

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