The details are still coming in, but this line, from Philadelphia Inquirer reporter Ellie Rushing jumped out at me:

The convictions, including a felony illegal gun possession case in 2013, would have barred Lewis from owning a gun.

Surely, surely! even the dullest leftist advocating more gun control laws ought to be able to see that the gun control laws that are already on the books did not keep suspect Eric Lewis from having not one but two firearms, a handgun and a shotgun.

Well, that line is now gone, as Miss Rushing edited her report:

Eric Lewis, the suspected gunman who ambushed two police officers overnight, leaving one dead, had a criminal history dating back to at least 2012, publicly-available court records show.

The convictions include a misdemeanor illegal gun possession case in 2013.

In 2012, he was charged with theft and receiving stolen property. He was later convicted at trial and sentenced to two years probation. Common Pleas Court Judge Sean Kennedy also ordered Lewis to undergo substance abuse treatment.

He was arrested again the following year and charged with illegal gun possession and simple assault. He was convicted of the charges in 2015 and was sentenced to five years probation. He was ordered by the judge to receive a drug and alcohol assessment, and a mental health evaluation.

Toward the end of his supervision, in 2018, he was convicted of disorderly conduct for fighting and was again sentenced to a year probation, as well as an additional three years of court supervision in the gun case.

Correction: An earlier version of this post incorrectly described the level of offense of the 2013 gun possession case, and its implication on whether Lewis could legally own firearms.

So, two years probation, followed by an arrest one year later, and then five years probation. Then he gets another conviction, and probation again. Unless Miss Rushing missed something, Mr Lewis was never sentenced to actual jail time. And as much as I’d like to blame this on Philadelphia’s George Soros-sponsored, criminal-loving and police-hating District Attorney, Larry Krasner, Mr Krasner only took office in 2018, so the first two probation sentences were not his fault.

Whether Mr Lewis was legally barred from owning a firearm, carrying a firearm in Philadelphia outside of your residence without a concealed carry permit is either a first-degree misdemeanor, or, if you are legally barred from owning a firearm, a third-degree felony. It would seem that Mr Lewis, who had to be aware of these laws given that he was on probation on firearms charges already, just didn’t care about obeying the laws.

Opening fire on the police the second they stepped on the porch would seem to be another indicator that obeying the law was not a priority for him.