Officer Cleared in Deadly Shooting of Homicide Suspect

Kenneth Philipp was at the end of his rope when he shot his ex-wife in the torso with a shotgun and then got into a gun battle with a police officer that would cost the 50-year-old man his life on April 18, District Attorney David Heckler said.

The district attorney said Friday at a press conference that the officer who shot Philipp during the gun battle, which drew police from Bristol, Middletown and several other Bucks County townships, has been cleared to return to duty. The county’s top law enforcement officer added that the policeman was justified in his actions and should be honored for his heroism.

Barry Pilla, Northampton’s police chief, and Lt. Mike Clark said the officer is handling the shooting well and should be back to work soon.

Authorities revealed they were aware at the time of the shootings that Philipp was in contact with a subject named “Smith.” Philipp wanted Smith to murder his ex-wife. Heckler described Smith as a “shadowy figure” they believed was living in Philadelphia. He added that police had spoke with Smith but the subject wanted money to meet with investigators.

Detectives also wanted Smith to wear a wire in an effort to building a case against the 50-year-old unemployed man, who was splitting his time sleeping at the his daughter and brother’s house.

County detectives continue to look for Smith, but Hecker said it is not a top priority.

Philipp had a history of police contacts and several cases against him since 2008, Heckler said. He added that Philipp was due in court on April 29 for violating probation in November when police said he went to his ex-wife’s home in Northampton and skulked around the house.

The 50-year-old’s former wife had a protection from abuse order against him, according to court documents.

Philipp was in jail after the November 2012 incident in which he violated the PFA and was found intoxicated and with a knife. His ex-wife – Violeta Isackov, 45, of Richboro – and her fiance were aware he posted $10,000 bail on April 2.

Officials said that just before 6 p.m. on April 18, Philipp followed Isackov, grabbed a shotgun from the trunk and shot her through the driver-side window , injuring her 16-year-old daughter’s hand. Isackov and her daughter were at a shopping center in the 100 block of Bustleton Pike to pick up a dress for the 45-year-old mother of two’s wedding, which was scheduled to take place the next weekend.

Witnesses took down the license plate of the older-while Lincoln sedan he borrowed from his daughter and told police, who issued an alert on the radio.

A Northampton police officer, Timothy Friel, spotted the car and followed, calling for additional officers to assist before he pulled the suspect vehicle over. Just then, the white Lincoln stopped on Buck Road near the Pheasant Valley Shopping Center on Buck Road in Northampton. Philipp jumped out and fired three shotgun blasts at the officer, police said.

Friel tried to exit his patrol car, which was struck by pellets from the weak-at-long-distance ammunition Philipp used, but he got hung up on the seatbelt as he radioed that shots were fired and made a grab for his sidearm. Stuck on the belt, Heckler said the 9-year veteran began firing with his non-dominant left hand. When he got free, the officer took cover behind his car and fatally shot Philipp twice in the head and once in the shoulder as he ducked in the Lincoln to reload the shotgun, Heckler told reporters.

Pilla said the gun battle did not last more than a minute or two. Friel’s bullet-proof vest stopped the officer from getting injured as blasts were fired at the patrol car.

Investigation revealed the shotgun Philipp used was passed down through the family since his father bought it at the Kmart in Feasterville in 1981, the district attorney said.

Heckler painted Phillipp as a man who broken and did not want to go back to jail after his April 29 hearing.

“This guy had a couple tastes of prison and plainly didn’t like it,” Heckler said.

In 2011, police confiscated Philipp’s guns. Heckler said the court was not aware of the shotgun used in the April shooting and he was not sure of where it was being kept before April 18.

Philipp was arrested at gunpoint by Northampton police in April 2011 after officers received reports he threatened to harm a patrol sergeant, who he had yelled racist remarks at and came at with broken glass, Heckler said.

Isackov was later charged with making up the fact that Philipp made threats against the officer in April 2011. Heckler said she made up incident because she was upset Philipp and was later charged.

Instead of getting married in late April, Isackov’s ashes were scattered overseas. Her two daughters are without a mother.

Related:

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• 2 Dead, 1 Hurt in Shootings; Daughter Watched Mother Die, DA Says