A highly decorated Nassau County Police Department Officer was shot and killed during a car stop of what was believed to have been a vehicle that had been involved in a hit and run accident. Not many details out yet, even though this happened yesterday, but it seems the officer approached the bad guy's vehicle and spoke to the bad guy and a moment or two after that, the bad guy gets out of his car and blasts the officer in his chest (or from other reports: the bad guy charged at the officer, exchanged words the started firing).
The officer, who was not wearing body armor, was killed.
The alleged bad guy reportedly gets back in car and drives away. The officer's partner, who was later treated for shock, tried applying first aid to his/her downed partner. There was nothing mentioned, in the piece I read at the time I saw it, about the partner returning fire or taking any other action to stop the bad guy. Seems there was sufficient time to react/act with some sort of action against the shooter especially since the car he was driving was driving on its rims and they suspected it had been involved in a hit and run accident earlier. In other words, I would tend to think the officers should have expected anything. I am sure there will be a lot of questions about that but I am not about to Monday morning quarterback; I will just wonder what in hell happened on this one for now!
After the alleged bad guy reportedly fled the scene, of the cop shooting, according to at least two reports I saw, he reportedly somehow pulled another car over - a third report I saw said the driver of that car had pulled over to talk to his daughter on the phone. Whichever way it happened, the bad guy then reportedly dragged the driver of that car out of the vehicle and shot that man dead, and drove off in that man's car. What a sad state of affairs for a guy just driving along minding his own business and talking to his little girl (no matter how old she may be) on the phone.
These are truly senseless and sad losses. Senseless because had the officer been wearing his body armor, I think chances are he would have survived and maybe even stopped the bad guy. Senseless even more so because the bad guy probably did not have to shoot the other driver to take his car,. Pointing a gun at an average New Yorker, who would most probably be unarmed, would have been more than enough to have him give up his car in most cases. Sad because - well, that should be obvious to everyone.
The NCPD does not have a mandatory body armor policy. The young officer only had 8 years on the job. I wonder when they who bash cops, by way of their blogs, any time one has an accidental discharge of his or her firearm, will write a blog post about this officer, and others like him, being the only ones. Only ones - but in a positive light. You know, as being one of the only ones who would do a the job of trying to protect you and yours, from thugs, rapists, psycho-killers and the like, while putting their lives in potential jeopardy every day they go to work. (Yes I know we should all be armed to protect ourselves but there still would be a need for the police to protect us just as well.) This fallen officer was, in the way I just described, an only one, and he lost his life because of it. The other victim, he was an only one too of a sort - he was a loving father. My thoughts and prayers go out to the families and loved ones of the fallen.
The alleged bad guy has been captured after an intensive manhunt but not really because of it. A call to 911 of "shots fired" in Queens, NY had the New York City Police department respond. An NYPD officer found the suspect, in a vehicle, with an apparently self inflicted gun shot wound to his shoulder. I can only hope it was not self inflicted but came from the gun of the fallen officer's partner during the initial confrontation. I imagine if he did shoot himself, either it was accidentally o a bad shot in a suicide attempt. Of course, maybe he did it to garner sympathy, thinking if he had been shot someone would feel sorry for him. How anyone could feel sorry for that guy, who in my opinion - if he is actually committed those killings - is a no good useless piece of shit, is beyond me.
Nassau is the western of two counties that make up Long Island (well actually there are sort of 4 counties on LI but no one here really admits that the western two - Brooklyn and Queens are really part of 'the island' with both of them being in NYC).
This was all too close to home, not because of the nearby location so much but because I am pretty sure I have met the officer before. That would either have been when I was on the job or maybe at a local pub or maybe just seeing him out in a patrol car. He sure looks familiar and I do not easily forget faces although I usually cannot recall where I saw a face before or the name that goes with it. It is even closer to home for my wife because she indeed did know him having met him at work, she works for the NCPD.
All the best,
Glenn B
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