By KEITH PHUCAS
Times Herald Staff

COURTHOUSE — With the murderers of two men at large and the Norristown community on edge, solid police work by two Norristown patrol officers cracked the unsolved cases when the an officer zeroed in on a Chevy Lumina parked outside a Mexican restaurant.

Officers Brian Saxon and Christopher Smith questioned two men, Stanley Howard and Shawn Jacobs, who were in the vehicle that night, Dec. 13, 2008, and recovered a 9mm KelTec handgun at Howard’s feet that was linked to the murder of Jamal Terry on Powell Street three days earlier, according to Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office.

The officers spotted the discarded handgun near the car during a search that followed Saxon chasing one of the suspects down the street.

“At the time, we had no clue they dropped it until we came back to the car afterwards and noticed the gun,” Saxon said.

Saxon had ticketed the Chevy for a parking violation days before on Powell Street, and that’s why it caught his eye. He issued the citations just hours before Terry was shot and killed.

Howard and Shawn Jacobs were later convicted of killing Terry during the armed robbery. Weeks after his arrest for Terry’s slaying, Howard was charged with a second fatal hold-up.

Saxon and Smith received commendations from the DA Risa Vetri Ferman Monday in Courtroom “A” along with other police and detectives for their crucial efforts on criminal cases.

“Some people do their jobs and just do enough to get by. Each of these men and women stepped up and did more. They took on challenges. They put their lives at risk. They devoted time and energy to making sure that the work was done completely, competently and correctly,” Ferman said. “They put other people before themselves. We owe these men and women a debt of gratitude. It is a true honor for me to be able to stand here today with them and offer our thanks and appreciation for a job well done.”

Upper Merion police Detective Paul Bradbury and Philadelphia police Officer Christopher Brennan received commendations for their work that led to the apprehension of an Upper Merion man, James Nicholai, who is suspected of stabbing to death his neighbor Richard Porter.

Bradbuy reportedly developed a rapport with Nicholai that led to a confession of the crime, the DA said. Brennan, with his “body half in and half out” of the suspect’s speeding car, managed to subdue Nicholai as the vehicle crashed.

Montgomery County Township police Detective Edward T. Davies was instrumental in building a “compelling circumstantial case” that led to the arrest of Damon Benson, who broke into a township’s woman’s home in 2008, assaulted her and locked the homeowner in her basement. Eventually, Benson was convicted and sentenced to prison.

Lower Merion police Detective Gregory Henry’s investigative work led to the arrest of a chiropractor Dr. Alan Kushner, who was convicted of hiring a hit man to kill his wife outside her Bala Cynwyd home in 2008. Currently, Kushner is serving a prison sentence.

Norristown patrol Officer Angela Anderson’s actions last December led to the quick apprehension of Ryan Starling, who is accused of fatally shooting Lawrence Stevenson minutes before at Curren Terrace Apartments.                                                                                                                                
Anderson, who responded to the shooting saw a man fitting the description of the gunman and confronted him. She was grateful two other Norristown police officers arrived quickly as back-up.

“Fortunately, (the suspect) wasn’t armed, which of course I had no idea,” she said. “So, I was a little nervous. Well, I was a lot nervous.”

Quakertown police Officer Joshua Mallery helped crack a string of “smash and grab” burglaries in 2008, when he spotted the suspect’s car not far from one of the incidents.

Dominick Kaserkie, of T-Mobile Communications, assisted the DA’s Office in a homicide investigation a month ago by obtaining phone records for investigators leading to the arrest of three suspects.

Amy Charles and Barbara Weitz, two lawyers who perform volunteer work for Mission Kids Child Advocacy Center, received commendations for their many hundreds of hours of service.