On December20, 2014, Ismaaiyl Abdullah Brinsley shot and killed Rafael Ramos and Wenjian two on-duty New York City Police Department (NYPD) in the Bedford–Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn. Brinsley then fled into the New York City Subway, where he killed himself. Earlier in the day, before he killed Ramos and Liu, Brinsley had shot and wounded his ex-girlfriend Shaneka Thompson in Baltimore after initially pointing the gun at his own head.
Background and events
The shooting occurred just weeks after a grand jury decided not to indict NYPD officer Daniel Pantaleo, who was responsible for the death of Eric Garner on July17, 2014. The grand jury's decision resulted in widespread protests in New York City and across the nation against police brutality and the lack of accountability for it. The protests also coincided with widespread protests in response to a grand jury's decision not to indict Darren Wilson, the police officer who shot Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, on August9. Brinsley's motive to kill the NYPD officers was motivated by outrage over the two deaths.
Before Brinsley arrived in Brooklyn by bus, he shot and seriously wounded his 29-year-old ex-girlfriend, Shaneka Nicole Thompson, in the Baltimore suburb of Owings Mills, Maryland, on Saturday morning. The second shooting occurred at Myrtle Avenue and Tompkins Avenue, a busy intersection in Brooklyn near the Tompkins Houses. Brinsley approached the passenger window of an NYPD patrol car occupied by Rafael Ramos, 40, and Wenjian Liu, 32, of Brooklyn's 84th Precinct. He then fired a semiautomatic handgun four times through the open window, striking Ramos and Liu in the head and upper body, killing both officers instantly. Two Con Ed workers who witnessed the shooting notified police. After NYPD officers responding to the scene chased him onto the subway, he killed himself with the handgun in the Myrtle–Willoughby Avenues () subway station, according to police. Brinsley and the two police officers were taken to Woodhull Hospital, and all were pronounced dead on arrival.
Officers killed
Rafael Ramos
Rafael Ramos (December9, 1974 – December20, 2014), married and a father of two, resident of Glendale, Queens, had joined the NYPD as a school safety agent, before being promoted to officer in January 2012. He was active in his church, Christ Tabernacle in Glendale, and had once studied at a seminary. He had just completed a training course to become a volunteer chaplain. He planned to eventually join the ministry when he retired from the police force.
The Silver Shield Foundation, founded by the late New York Yankees owner George Steinbrenner, announced it would pay for the education of Ramos' 13-year-old son, Jaden. Bowdoin College said it would provide full financial aid to Ramos' elder son, who is a sophomore at the school, so he could complete his education.
A funeral service for both Officers Ramos and Liu, the largest police funeral in the city's history, was held on December27 in Glendale with over 100,000 people present, including many politicians such as Vice President Joe Biden; the service itself from start to finish was almost five hours long and was broadcast around the world, with many people coming from across the country to pay their respects to the slain officer. Afterward, Ramos' body was transported to St. John Cemetery in nearby Middle Village, where he was laid to rest. Hundreds of officers turned their backs to Mayor Bill de Blasio as he delivered his eulogy.
Wenjian Liu
Wenjian Liu (; April8, 1982 – December20, 2014) was the only son of Chinese immigrants Weitang Liu and Xiuyan Li. He and his family came to the United States from Taishan, Guangdong in China, when he was 12years old. He was a seven-year veteran officer of the NYPD who had married Peixia Chen in October 2014. He had no children at the time of death.
Following a wake on January3 containing elements of Chinese and Buddhist rituals, a funeral service for Liu took place on January4 at the Ralph Aievoli & Son Funeral Home in Dyker Heights, Brooklyn. In protest of de Blasio's perceived lack of support for them, some attending police officers turned their backs on the video screen showing de Blasio's eulogy speech; however, de Blasio and NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton were also saluted at the ceremony. Afterward, Liu's body was transported to Cypress Hills Cemetery in Cypress Hills, Brooklyn, and was laid to rest. After his burial, a post burial dinner, a Chinese tradition for honoring the deceased and giving his spirit a good send-off to heaven, was held in Sunset Park, Brooklyn.
