Man draws prison for pointing gun at detective

Damar Marcus Coleman of Norristown guilty of weapons and assault charges; sentenced to 8 years

NORRISTOWN >> A Norristown man who pointed a loaded gun at the chest of a borough detective during a disturbance, and who was then shot and wounded by the detective, is headed to prison on weapons and assault charges.

Damar Marcus Coleman, 30, of the 600 block of Swede Street, was sentenced in Montgomery County Court on Friday to 8-to-24-years in a state correctional facility after he pleaded guilty to felony charges of aggravated assault and person not to possess a firearm in connection with a Feb. 27, 2018, incident during which he pointed a Phoenix Arms Raven .25-caliber semiautomatic pistol at a borough detective.

“When confronted by (the detective), you took that loaded firearm, which was in your hand, and pointed it at (the detective), pressing it into his chest, attempting to cause serious bodily injury to him,” county Assistant District Attorney Laura Bradbury addressed Coleman in court as she explained the specific nature of Coleman’s admission.

“At the time that you pointed the loaded firearm at (the detective), it was unable to fire because of a ‘double feed’ in the barrel of the gun,” Bradbury added.

According to prosecutors, a double feed is a malfunction that occurs when two rounds attempt to feed into a pistol’s chamber at the same time.

With the charges, prosecutors also alleged Coleman was prohibited from legally possessing a firearm because he had a previous felony drug conviction dating back to 2009. The investigation determined that the pistol possessed by Coleman was reported stolen in 2012 to Marple Township police in Delaware County, according to court papers.

The sentence was imposed by Judge Wendy G. Rothstein as part of a plea agreement. Coleman, who was represented by defense lawyer Andrew Joseph Levin, was scheduled to go to trial on the charges on Monday. GUN >> PAGE 3