Another seemingly random shooting in North Philadelphia on Friday night claimed the life of yet another city police officer and cost the Northeast another son, brother, husband, father-to-be, neighbor and friend.
Officer John Pawlowski Jr., 25, became the 253rd police officer killed in the line of duty in Philadelphia, according to the Officer Down Memorial page, a widely recognized Web site that pays tribute to fallen cops. He also became the seventh local cop killed in the last 33 months, dating to the May 8, 2006 shooting of 15th district Community Relations Officer Gary Skerski as he thwarted a robbery at a Northwood bar.