LuAnn Randall's swollen face took up the front page of today's Daily News -- and with good reason.

The word "senseless" gets thrown around quite a bit when we news media types talk about the violent crime in this city, but this is one of the rare times when it actually fits. For those of you just joining us, LuAnn is a 42-year-old nurse who cares for high-risk pregnant women in some of the city's poorest neighborhoods.

On Monday, she was in Fern Rock, about to visit another needy patient, when a guy leaned into her car and asked for her wallet. Before she could react, he started swinging. When she woke up a few hours later in a hospital bed, her face was literally broken. Her nose, cheek bones, and all of the orbital bones around her right eye were crushed, leaving her with a recovery time that will be measured in months and reconstructive surgery.

LuAnn, mind you, did not wander into Fern Rock sight unseen from the 'burbs. She had done missionary work in El Salvador and Israel, worked for a while after that as an Air Force nurse but still felt that serving the needy folks in Philly was her true calling. She knew that some of the neighborhoods she worked in were dangerous, but she figured that at the very least, people would respect someone who was there to help.

The Citizens Crime Commission of Delaware Valley has a a $5,000 reward for info that leads cops to the guy pictured in this sketch. Police said he's a thin, medium-complected black man in his 30s who fled on a mountain bike.

"It hurts my heart so badly that I now have to second-guess what I'm doing," LuAnn said Wednesday night, when we visited her at her home. "You think there would be some respect for the police, firemen and nurses who bust their butts for you every day. I just want this guy caught."

So far, the tips that have come in "haven't panned out," said Lt. Frank Vanore of Northwest Detectives. If any of this rings a bell, call the Crime Commission at 215-546-TIPS.