Two New York Police Officers Killed by Gunman in Apparent Revenge Killing

Carrie Dedrick | Updated: Dec 22, 2014

Two New York Police Officers Killed by Gunman in Apparent Revenge Killing

Two New York police officers were killed Saturday (Dec. 20) when a gunman attacked them in a parked patrol car. Officers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu were killed at about 2:45 p.m. in Brooklyn. 

The gunman was Ismaaiyl Brinsley; Brinsley killed himself shortly after attacking Ramos and Liu. 

Authorities reported that Brinsley posted several messages on social media prior to the attack, the last of which referenced Eric Garner and Michael Brown, black men who had been killed by white officers after allegedly resisting arrest. Brinsley's post said suggested killing police officers in retaliation of Brown and Garner’s deaths the Wall Street Journal reports. 

Police Commissioner William Bratton said in a new conference statement, Some of the postings…that are out there would seem to indicate that he had a very strong bias against police officers. As to a specific motivation, hopefully we will be able to determine that.”

Michael Brown’s family condemned Brinsley’s deadly attack and any other violence toward police. “We reject any kind of violence directed toward members of law enforcement. It cannot be tolerated. We must work together to bring peace to our communities,” the family said in a statement. 

Publication date: December 22, 2014



Two New York Police Officers Killed by Gunman in Apparent Revenge Killing