Post by coots on May 4, 2015 0:20:32 GMT -5
NY Post
‘Cop Shooter’ Arraigned on Attempted Murder as Officer Clings to Life
nypost.com/2015/05/02/nypd-cop-shot-in-the-head-in-queens/
Article...plus 18 pictures of suspect and location of shooting
Officer Brian Moore......................................................Suspect Demetrius Blackwell
Queens ex-con was arraigned on attempted-murder charges Sunday after allegedly shooting a plainclothes NYPD cop in the head, leaving him clinging to life.
Suspect Demetrius Blackwell, who appeared in Queens Criminal Court in a torn prison jumpsuit — his legs shackled and his hands cuffed behind his back — did not enter a plea and was held without bail. His next court date is Friday.
The officer he is accused of shooting, Brian Moore, 25, took a turn for the worse early Sunday after surgery to relieve pressure on his brain, and distraught family members were rushing to his side, sources said.
Moore is the fifth NYPD officer to be shot in as many months.
A four-year department veteran from a police family, Moore was driving with his partner by the intersection of 212th Street and 104th Avenue in Queens Village at around 6:15 p.m. Saturday when the incident occurred.
The pair spotted Blackwell, whom they knew to have a long police record, said Police Commissioner Bill Bratton.
Blackwell had been fiddling with his waistband, a source said.
Moore and his partner, Officer Erik Jansen, pulled up behind him, and Blackwell realized they were cops.
Words were exchanged, Bratton told a news conference at Jamaica Hospital on Saturday.
Then suddenly, Blackwell, 35, drew a gun and fired at least three shots at the cop car, shattering the quiet of the middle-class neighborhood, authorities said.
“He immediately opened fire on them before they had a chance to get out of the vehicle,” Bratton said.
Moore was struck at least once in the back of the head, with the bullet exiting the front of his face, sources said. Jansen was not injured.
Fellow officers placed Moore, who is assigned to the 105th Precinct, in a squad car and sped to Jamaica Hospital.
Moore’s father and uncle are retired NYPD sergeants, and his cousin is a city cop.
“It doesn’t look good,” one worried officer could be heard telling another in the emergency room, which was crammed with fellow brothers in blue as Moore underwent at least four hours of surgery.
Other officers launched a manhunt for the suspected gunman, finding him at a home nearby with the help of witnesses who saw him flee.
“We saw him jump over the fence across 104th Street and push the gun in his pants,” said one neighbor. “He then ran down the sidewalk and into the driveway of a house three houses down.
“Then I ran over to the police car and told them where he went.”
Bratton said the suspect was “taken into custody 90 minutes after the incident.”
Mayor Bill de Blasio and NYPD Police Commissioner William Bratton speak to the press at Jamaica Hospital Center following the shooting.
Blackwell was charged with attempted murder, assault and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon, authorities said. He was expected to be arraigned Sunday afternoon.
“Last night’s shooting once again reminds us of the dangers that our police officers face each day as they carry out their sworn duty to protect and serve our communities,” said Queens District Attorney Richard Brown in announcing the charges Sunday.
“The defendant is accused of firing a weapon at two officers without warning, one of whom was struck in the head. That officer is presently hospitalized in critical condition and is fighting for his life. The defendant faces life in prison for his alleged actions.”
The shooting came as efforts are under way by City Council members to cut the power of police, and follows the fatal ambush of officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos in Brooklyn in December, and the nonfatal shooting of two other officers, Andrew Dossi and Aliro Pellerano in The Bronx in January.
Law-enforcement sources told The Post that Blackwell has a record of 10 arrests, including five on charges of robbery, grand larceny and criminal possession of a weapon.
Cops said they’re still looking for the gun.
“It is a painful day for all of us,” said Mayor de Blasio, who also spoke at the hospital Saturday.
“He is a brave young man,” the mayor said of Moore.
Police gathered there did not turn their backs on de Blasio, as they did at the funerals of Liu, 32, and Ramos, 40.
Before last December, it had been four years since an NYPD officer was shot dead on duty.
NYPD Detective Peter Figoski died on Dec. 12, 2011, after being shot while responding to a home invasion in Brooklyn.
Neighbors of Moore in Nassau County were shocked. “He’s a good kid said a woman who asked not to be identified. “We’re all praying for him. I’ve known him since he was a baby.
Another neighbor, Joan Olton, said she’s known Moore since he was three years old. Moore had planned to visit her son that night at her home to watch the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight.
“My son is distraught,’’ she said.
Her daughter, she said, was Moore’s high school prom date, and while they’re no longer a couple, they’re still friends and she went to the hospital to see him.
She told her mom that she saw him being wheeled into a CAT Scan machine after surgery.
A fellow officer who knows Moore fumed, “This is the city we live in today.
“Innocent cops keep getting shot for no reason.’’
Discussing his injured pal, he recalled, “he was always laughing and smiling.’’
Prayers for a complete recovery
‘Cop Shooter’ Arraigned on Attempted Murder as Officer Clings to Life
nypost.com/2015/05/02/nypd-cop-shot-in-the-head-in-queens/
Article...plus 18 pictures of suspect and location of shooting
Officer Brian Moore......................................................Suspect Demetrius Blackwell
Queens ex-con was arraigned on attempted-murder charges Sunday after allegedly shooting a plainclothes NYPD cop in the head, leaving him clinging to life.
Suspect Demetrius Blackwell, who appeared in Queens Criminal Court in a torn prison jumpsuit — his legs shackled and his hands cuffed behind his back — did not enter a plea and was held without bail. His next court date is Friday.
The officer he is accused of shooting, Brian Moore, 25, took a turn for the worse early Sunday after surgery to relieve pressure on his brain, and distraught family members were rushing to his side, sources said.
Moore is the fifth NYPD officer to be shot in as many months.
A four-year department veteran from a police family, Moore was driving with his partner by the intersection of 212th Street and 104th Avenue in Queens Village at around 6:15 p.m. Saturday when the incident occurred.
The pair spotted Blackwell, whom they knew to have a long police record, said Police Commissioner Bill Bratton.
Blackwell had been fiddling with his waistband, a source said.
Moore and his partner, Officer Erik Jansen, pulled up behind him, and Blackwell realized they were cops.
Words were exchanged, Bratton told a news conference at Jamaica Hospital on Saturday.
Then suddenly, Blackwell, 35, drew a gun and fired at least three shots at the cop car, shattering the quiet of the middle-class neighborhood, authorities said.
“He immediately opened fire on them before they had a chance to get out of the vehicle,” Bratton said.
Moore was struck at least once in the back of the head, with the bullet exiting the front of his face, sources said. Jansen was not injured.
Fellow officers placed Moore, who is assigned to the 105th Precinct, in a squad car and sped to Jamaica Hospital.
Moore’s father and uncle are retired NYPD sergeants, and his cousin is a city cop.
“It doesn’t look good,” one worried officer could be heard telling another in the emergency room, which was crammed with fellow brothers in blue as Moore underwent at least four hours of surgery.
Other officers launched a manhunt for the suspected gunman, finding him at a home nearby with the help of witnesses who saw him flee.
“We saw him jump over the fence across 104th Street and push the gun in his pants,” said one neighbor. “He then ran down the sidewalk and into the driveway of a house three houses down.
“Then I ran over to the police car and told them where he went.”
Bratton said the suspect was “taken into custody 90 minutes after the incident.”
Mayor Bill de Blasio and NYPD Police Commissioner William Bratton speak to the press at Jamaica Hospital Center following the shooting.
Blackwell was charged with attempted murder, assault and two counts of criminal possession of a weapon, authorities said. He was expected to be arraigned Sunday afternoon.
“Last night’s shooting once again reminds us of the dangers that our police officers face each day as they carry out their sworn duty to protect and serve our communities,” said Queens District Attorney Richard Brown in announcing the charges Sunday.
“The defendant is accused of firing a weapon at two officers without warning, one of whom was struck in the head. That officer is presently hospitalized in critical condition and is fighting for his life. The defendant faces life in prison for his alleged actions.”
The shooting came as efforts are under way by City Council members to cut the power of police, and follows the fatal ambush of officers Wenjian Liu and Rafael Ramos in Brooklyn in December, and the nonfatal shooting of two other officers, Andrew Dossi and Aliro Pellerano in The Bronx in January.
Law-enforcement sources told The Post that Blackwell has a record of 10 arrests, including five on charges of robbery, grand larceny and criminal possession of a weapon.
Cops said they’re still looking for the gun.
“It is a painful day for all of us,” said Mayor de Blasio, who also spoke at the hospital Saturday.
“He is a brave young man,” the mayor said of Moore.
Police gathered there did not turn their backs on de Blasio, as they did at the funerals of Liu, 32, and Ramos, 40.
Before last December, it had been four years since an NYPD officer was shot dead on duty.
NYPD Detective Peter Figoski died on Dec. 12, 2011, after being shot while responding to a home invasion in Brooklyn.
Neighbors of Moore in Nassau County were shocked. “He’s a good kid said a woman who asked not to be identified. “We’re all praying for him. I’ve known him since he was a baby.
Another neighbor, Joan Olton, said she’s known Moore since he was three years old. Moore had planned to visit her son that night at her home to watch the Pacquiao-Mayweather fight.
“My son is distraught,’’ she said.
Her daughter, she said, was Moore’s high school prom date, and while they’re no longer a couple, they’re still friends and she went to the hospital to see him.
She told her mom that she saw him being wheeled into a CAT Scan machine after surgery.
A fellow officer who knows Moore fumed, “This is the city we live in today.
“Innocent cops keep getting shot for no reason.’’
Discussing his injured pal, he recalled, “he was always laughing and smiling.’’
Prayers for a complete recovery