Trial to begin today for alleged Palestra gunmen

Eleven months and four days after a series of shootings that left one man dead and three others -- including a Penn student -- injured outside the Palestra, the trial of the two men accused of the crime is set to begin today. Kyle McLemore, 21, of the 1300 block of S. 29th Street, and Nathaniel Ortiz, 21, of the 1800 block of S. 6th Street, are being tried for murder, three counts of aggravated assault and other related charges in connection with the shooting following the Philadelphia Public League's high school boy's basketball championship held at the Palestra. Both McLemore and Ortiz have extensive criminal records, including arrests for robbery and drug possession. The incident was not thought to be directly related to the basketball game. Anthony Davis, 22, was shot in the back at least 15 times by a semi-automatic weapon as he was leaving the game at around 4:10 p.m. He was pronounced dead at the Hospital of the University of Pennsylvania soon after. The three wounded include then-College senior John La Bombard, who was working in the nearby Blauhaus -- a small Fine Arts shed located on 33rd Street between Walnut and Chestnut streets -- when a stray bullet came through the wooden walls and hit him in the leg. La Bombard is scheduled to testify during the trial. He could not be reached for comment yesterday. McLemore and Ortiz are being tried together with different attorneys. Jury selection and pretrial motions are set for today and opening statements are expected to begin early next week in front of Philadelphia Common Pleas Judge John Poserina. Prosecutors expressed confidence that the two defendants will be convicted. "[We will] meet our burden of proof," said Philadelphia Assistant District Attorney Jude Conroy. "Ortiz and McLemore conspired to shoot and kill Anthony Davis because of an ongoing dispute." McLemore surrendered himself to police shortly after the shooting, two days after a warrant was issued for his arrest. Ortiz was arrested in May after a lengthy search by the Philadelphia Police and the U.S. Marshals Service. Conroy said he expected to call La Bombard and fellow victim Latisha Feribee as "fact witnesses." Although both Ortiz and McLemore are on trial together, they are represented by different attorneys to prevent a conflict of interest, according to Conroy. Despite several eyewitnesses, the two defense attorneys say their clients will receive acquittals. "They can't win and I can't be beat," said Charles Peruto, who is representing McLemore. Peruto's confidence may stem from a previous acquittal when McLemore killed a man in October 1994. Peruto succeeded in persuading the jury that McLemore was acting in self-defense. According to Conroy, the case will last about two weeks. It will take place in Room 1002 of the Criminal Justice Center at 13th and Filbert streets. Penn has still not announced whether it will again host this year's championship game, now less than six weeks away.

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