NYPD officer who was killed in shooting is remembered

NEW YORK >> A sea of blue stretched down Fifth Avenue in Manhattan on Friday, as thousands of police officers gathered at St. Patrick’s Cathedral to bid farewell to Detective Jason Rivera a week after he was killed responding to a domestic disturbance call in Harlem.

Rivera’s death just 14 months after he joined the Police Department made him a symbol of the city’s hope and fears at a moment fraught with uncertainty about its future.

A son of Dominican immigrants, he had fulfilled a childhood dream of becoming a police officer during the pandemic as rising crime and the police killing of George Floyd roiled the city and strained his profession.

Mayor Eric Adams, in his eulogy at St. Patrick’s Cathedral, said that Rivera joined the department for the right reasons — to make change from within — and that his death was a reminder of what officers put on the line each day. He vowed to combat the “senseless violence” that led to the deaths of Rivera and his partner.

“You stand in the gap of safety,” Adams said. “And these two fine men watered the tree of safety and allowed us to sit under this shade from the hot sun of violence. You play a vital role in the prosperity of this city.”

The concerns over public safety were underscored in remarks by Rivera’s widow, Dominique Luzuriaga, who singled out the Manhattan district attorney, Alvin Bragg, in her tearful eulogy.

“The system continues to fail us,” she said. “We are not safe anymore, not even the members of the service. I know you were tired of these laws, especially from the new DA. I hope he’s watching you speak through me right now.”

Since taking office this month, Bragg has adopted policies aimed at reducing incarceration but toughened his stance on guns after pushback from police.

Bragg, who attended the funeral, said in a statement afterward that he was grieving for the slain officers and their families, adding that his office will “vigorously prosecute cases of violence against police.”

Rivera and his partner, Wilbert Mora, were fatally shot Jan. 21 by Lashawn McNeil, who surprised them from behind a bedroom door.

STEPHANIE KEITH — THE NEW YORK TIMES The funeral procession of Detective Jason Rivera, one of two New York City police officers who were shot and killed after responding to a domestic disturbance call in Harlem last week, departs St. Patrick’s Cathedral in New York on Friday.