By Bob Warner
The Philadelphia Inquirer
PHILADELPHIA — Police officers shot and killed an East Germantown man Saturday night after he rammed one of them with a car he had commandeered from a Chinese-food delivery driver, authorities said.
The shooting followed a brief chase that began around 11 p.m., when two uniformed officers from the 14th District saw LaSean Rinehart, 28, driving an all-terrain vehicle on the 2000 block of Nedro Street in East Germantown, said Lt. Raymond Evers, a police spokesman.
The officers tried to stop Rinehart - also spelled Rinehardt in court records - but he ditched the ATV and ran off, Evers said. The officers, whom Evers did not identify, pursued him.
Rinehart ran to the 5900 block of Kemble Street, where he found an idling Mitsubishi Lancer, whose driver had hopped out to deliver Chinese food, Evers said.
“He jumps into that car, ignores a command from the police to stop the vehicle, and then he deliberately rams one of the officers,” Evers said. “The officer hits the hood and the windshield. Then he falls to the ground and fires two shots.”
At that point, Evers said, the driver slammed the car into reverse and headed toward the other officer, who jumped out of the way and fired a shot at the driver.
The officers finally stopped the car and removed Rinehart, who was taken to Einstein Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead of a gunshot wound to the stomach, Evers said.
The officer hit with the car was treated at Einstein for bruises and a possible leg injury, Evers said. The officer’s partner was uninjured.
Both officers will be assigned to limited duties while Internal Affairs investigates, standard procedure, Evers said.
Ballistics tests will be conducted to determine who fired the fatal shot, Evers said. He said one of the officers is 37 with six years on the force and the other is 30 with 10 years of experience.
According to state court records, Rinehart had been arrested eight times in the last 11 years. He pleaded guilty to offenses that included criminal conspiracy, retail theft, and carrying firearms without a license. He was arrested last month on burglary, robbery, and firearms charges and was awaiting arraignment in Montgomery County.
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