A total of four people were hit by gunfire, and one was killed.
The wounded policeman, Officer Luis Rodriguez, has 15 years on the Chester police force. He was shot in the shoulder on Tuesday afternoon, and was released from the hospital on Wednesday.
Police say the person who was killed, 16-year-old Andre Morales, was found wearing a mask behind the building where the confrontation occurred. He apparently died from police gunfire after Officer Rodriguez was wounded.
Another teen, 16-year-old Shaquille Byrd, a well-known local basketball player, was also shot. He was reported in critical but stable condition.
Police say Byrd and Morales were the perpetrators in the crime.
It all began with a reported break-in around 4:15 p.m. Tuesday at 333 Rose Street in Chester, which houses a garage and a 2nd floor apartment. Police say the teenagers attempted to rob a card game inside the home.
"I'd seen the gunman come around the corner of the garage and went into the garage, he looked over at me, he had a mask on, and he had a double-barrel shotgun," witness Diane Riggold said.
It was there that Officer Rodriguez was shot as he confronted one of the males, identified as Morales, climbing out of a second story window.
Soon, police officers from across Delaware County rushed to the scene upon hearing one of their own was hit by gunfire.
Police believed that in the chaos following the gunfire, an armed suspect retreated into the Rose Street property. However, a later search found no one inside, though authorities did discover a shotgun.
A fourth victim, a 34-year-old man, is in stable condition. He is said to be one of the robbery targets from the card game.
Mayor Wendell Butler told reporters, "Needless to say, I am upset that there's been another death in my town."
This shootout comes 10 days after a state of emergency was declared in some high-crime Chester neighborhoods, because of so many murders just this month. Wednesday's shootout did not happen in one of the neighborhoods under the state of emergency.
Police thanked the residents of this neighborhood for getting involved and calling the authorities.
"This brazen, daylight home invasion robbery was interrupted by police and those responsible brought to justice, only because alert members of the community did not hesitate to call 911," Delaware County District Attorney Mike Green said.
All the weapons fired during yesterday's confrontation between police and the suspects have been seized by the district attorney for ballistics testing. They hope to rule out the possibility that Officer Rodriguez was struck by friendly fire.
