May 4, 2015
Mayor Bill de Blasio: Thank you, commissioner. Well, our city is in mourning. Our hearts are heavy. We lost one of New York’s Finest – and that phrase needs to be fully understood in this moment. We lost of one of the best amongst us – a young man who was called to do good for others, to serve others, who was willing to put his life on the line. That is not most people. That is one of the finest amongst us who will do that.
Officer Brian Moore made the ultimate sacrifice – just 25 years of age, courageous young man, and his service record proves it. He did everything a good police officer was supposed to do, and he was awarded many times for both his valor and his professionalism.
He risked his life for a very simple notion – to keep everyone else safe, to keep our society safe, to keep order. This is what he wanted to do. I spoke with his father and other members of his family, and they talked about – on Saturday, they talked about how much his life was devoted to being a police officer in this police department, how this was his dream, because he had seen such extraordinary examples in his own family, and he wanted to be just as good as them. He lived out his dream. He emulated his father and his uncle, and he followed in their footsteps.
Our hearts are with the Moore family. This is a family that has done so much for the rest of us – a family that deserved only the best, and now is feeling the most profound pain and loss. And our hearts are with the entire extended family of the NYPD, because every member of this department – every former member of this department – is feeling this sense of loss and pain right now today.
I want to also extend some thank-you’s to the extraordinary men and women of Jamaica Hospital, who labored so intensely against the odds, did everything they knew how to do to help Officer Moore, and we thank them for their extraordinary efforts.
It’s a moment of loss. It’s a time to focus on the Moore family. It’s a time to support their healing, which will be long and difficult, but we need to be there for the Moore family and we need to be thankful that there was a hero amongst us known as Brian Moore.
Just a few words in Spanish –
[Mayor de Blasio speaks in Spanish]
Thank you.
Commissioner William Bratton, NYPD: Thank you, Mr. Mayor. And add a thank-you to Dr. Eli Kleinman, who is the department’s chief surgeon, who helped to coordinate the care that was given to Officer Moore during the last two-and-a-half days at Jamaica Hospital. Doctor, thank you so much for your service as always. Detective – Chief of Detectives Bob Boyce will now give you an update on the criminal investigation that he has been leading.
Chief of Detectives Robert Boyce, NYPD: Good evening. As been reported, at 6:15 Saturday evening, Officer Moore was shot on 104th Place in Queens. Pursuant to that investigation, we arrested a Demetrius Blackwell, a 35-year-old male, at approximately 7:30 that evening. Our investigation was aided dramatically by Officer Moore’s partner. He identified that individual later on at the 105 Precinct detective squad directly thereafter, and we arrested him on that block. We have two witnesses who identify Mr. Blackwell running with a firearm directly after the shots. They hear three shots and then they see him running on 104th Avenue the next block over. He then retreats back into the backyards. And we apprehend him about, as I said, 7:30 in the evening. This morning, at 9:00, we recovered a Taurus Model 85 five-shot revolver in one of the backyards on 104th Road, which is where the shooting occurred. It is a Model 85. It has three spent rounds and two live rounds in its chamber – it’s a five-shot gun. We did some trace on it. We found that it is stolen out of Perry, Georgia on October 3 of 2011, as part of 23 guns that were stolen at a bait and tackle shop down in Georgia. Nine of those guns have since found its way on the streets of New York and we’ve made arrests in regards. That is what we have right now, as I said to the commissioner. Going forward [inaudible] Queens district attorney’s going to do.
Commissioner Bratton: Questions on topic only please.
Question: [inaudible]
Commissioner Bratton: Thank you. Thank you for doing what they do in the midst of the grief and tragedy – in addition to the murder over the weekend, that we also lost two other officers who passed away; that, in fact, the 105 Precinct was at the funeral this morning for another officer from the 105 Precinct, and then left there immediately to go to the hospital where it was announced that Officer Moore had passed away. No, we say thank you – that policing is never easy. At this time in America, it’s even more difficult. And their sacrifices and their hard work and dedication, we should also all be very, very thankful that we have so many men and women who are willing to, in the midst of the adversity that they face every day, the dangers that they face, clearly, as evidenced by the events of Saturday night, go forth onto the streets and byways of this city and around the country and do great work. Over the weekend, in a conversation – I’ve been doing now for almost 50 years, and it never gets easier – but there was a comment made, and I’ve heard this at every police death in those 50 years, 40 years, that why is it always the good ones? Well, maybe the reason it’s always the good ones is because there are so many good ones – that we pay a lot of attention and focus on the bad, and there are those, but they are the few. But thankfully, the vast majority are the good ones. So, that’s why that comment, when it’s made, at every police death, is usually about a good guy, because they are good guys – good guys and girls, good men and women.
Question: [inaudible]
Mayor: First, I want to say – I want to absolutely commend the point that Commissioner Bratton made. I’ve been to a number of these funerals already in my public service, and I’ve talked to a number of families who have lost someone who’s served us, and there are so many good police officers, so many who believed with everything in their being that it was their obligation to put their life on the line for other. And that, I emphasize, is a rare and special human being who makes that decision, and then lives it out every day – and in the case of Brian Moore, did it with tremendous energy and distinction. So, there are so many good men and women who make this choice, and we are blessed. To your question, today – as people who know the extended family of the NYPD will say – today was a day for members of the NYPD to be together at that hospital. It was not a place, in my view, for elected officials.
Question: [inaudible] leader of this city, to speak on behalf of this city [inaudible] I’ve been working here for 22 years, and I can’t remember a time where a mayor wasn’t in the hospital when they made the announcement that a police officer had passed. So there are many people asking –
Mayor: And we’re happy to answer your question.
Question: [inaudible]
Mayor: We’re happy to –
Question: [inaudible]
Mayor: – yes, we’re happy to answer your question. Again, I was at the hospital Saturday, and I’ve been at many such situations. I don’t necessarily agree with your interpretation. I want to say this – this is about our commitment to our police officers. And in my view, it has been clear and consistent – this is something Commissioner Bratton and I talk about all the time – the things we need to do to support the men and women of this department. And I have been honored to stand by them in good times and bad, and I’ve done it many times, and I’ve done it in a way that was appropriate and in constant consultation with the leadership of this department.
Question: So, you’re sticking with your response –
Mayor: Ma’am, you’ve had two opportunities. Let’s take other questions please.
Question: [inaudible]
Commissioner Bratton: I can speak to this. It was on my advice that the mayor did not come to the hospital, because of the uncertainty of circumstances at the hospital during the morning, that it was not certain if the officer was going to pass, or when he was going to pass, and when he did, that the idea was to, in dealing with the family, to try to move Officer Moore to Bellevue as soon as possible – so rather than delay to have the mayor come in from downtown, it was my suggestion that in fact, we would deal with the officer’s departure from the hospital – which we did with great honor. And we did a press availability for you, at which we took no questions, and but did indicate that we would arrange this event this evening which would allow both the mayor and I to – to express to the city, to the men and women of this department, that our thoughts relative to Officer Moore, which we will do once again at the wake on – my understanding is the wake may be Thursday one day, and the funeral service probably on Friday, so that there will be opportunity at that time to also continue to express our sympathies to the family, as well as to the men and women that do so much for this city, and the department. Thank you.
Question: [inaudible]
Commissioner Bratton: I think I can speak to that. We have not spoken to any great degree about the details of the shooting event itself, that focus has been very much on the recovery of that firearm the last 30-some-odd hours. We will have a briefing, probably later this week – we try to usually do it within 72 hours of an event, a preliminary briefing to make a determination as to – to the best of our understanding – what transpired. And so I would expect that at some point in time this week, we will have that, and try and reconstruct very specifically what happened at that scene at that time. Certainly the chief of detectives can speak to what he’s going to need to assist District Attorney Brown at that grand jury presentation, as well as for the filing of the charges.
Chief of Detectives Boyce: Presently, we’re lining up witnesses to testify at the grand jury. We have quite a few, as I said, from the committee, and [inaudible] that we have two people who identified him. We also have other persons who saw him running through the yard, and possibly could also testify to that fact as well. So, at one point, he changed his clothing in the backyards. We made a note of that. You saw him at arraignment with the Tyvek suit. That’s because that took that evidence. We found that to be probative, and we vouchered it. So, that’s some of the things we’ll be introducing, as well as the gun, and other persons in his life. We found now that he is estranged from everybody in his family. We’re trying to locate exactly where he was living. We have one house that he spent at least two weeks in. He is from that neighborhood. This individual spent about six years in jail. He took his first arrest when he was 15 years old. He’s been arrested for robbery three times. So – again, this is an ongoing investigation, and we’ll go forward in that way.
Al.
Question: [inaudible]
Chief of Detectives Boyce: Yeah, as soon as – 23 weapons that were stolen in October of 2011, 10 of which have been recovered – nine of which have been recovered in New York City – Taurus 5-shot, easily concealed. We have one of the witnesses who’s actually seen a silver weapon, and that’s in line with what we thought initially.
Question: Can you tell us a little bit more about how this [inaudible] and was it hidden, and was it along the route in which the witnesses said he fled?
Chief of Detectives Boyce: It was, Al, if you go through the backyards, and you’re hopping fences, which is what you need to do in Queens to go from yard to yard, everything is fenced in. It is under a box near a grill, a barbecue grill, When we lifted the box, there it was. Right now – it was sent to the lab – it’s being processed now, for fingerprints, DNA, whatever we find.
Question: Judge Brown told you that the charge would be murder of a police officer. Are you confident that Blackwell knew he was shooting at a cop when he opened fire?
Chief of Detectives Boyce: One of the things left at the crime scene from our officers was his shield. I’m quite confident. It is a Ford Crown Victoria, commonly used by police officers all over the country. So, yes, I am.
Question: Is there any video of the shooting itself [inaudible] is it possible [inaudible]?
Chief of Detectives Boyce: Right now, we have a police officer calling a 13 – we are estimating the time comes at 6:15 in the evening – he calls a 13 directly thereafter. We do not have ShotSpotter in that area, so we don’t get an exact timestamp. We do have him on video at certain parts – I’m not going to go into it too much. I’ll let the Queens DA go further into that, but we do have snippets – not of the crime itself, his running from it.
Question: [inaudible]
Chief of Detectives Boyce: That was done. I’m not going to go into it, though.
Question: [inaudible]
Commissioner Bratton: It would only be speculative – the idea that the tenor of the times in the country. This is, during my time now – next year, it’ll be 50 years I’ve been associated with law enforcement – and you’d have to almost go back, I think, to the late 60s, early 70s to see a time when there was so much anti-police sentiment in the country. And it is ironic that there is so much of that at this juncture, because over the last 20 years – and the city serves as a shining example – the men and women of law enforcement have made this country so much safer than it was, after the chaos of the 70s and 80s. So it is ironic that a relatively small number of incidents that there are so many trying to take away from the hard work of the 850,000 American police officers, who every day are still out there despite the very large amount of invective being thrown at them at this particular time, who, like Officer Moore and his partner, are still out there, very proactively working. I think you’ve seen, just this past week in New York City, the idea of our officers have been getting guns off the street from the subway system, from the parks, from the streets. They are certainly not stepping back, even as the profession and many of them are being seemingly, endlessly attacked. I’m privileged to lead what I think is the most professional police department in the United States at this juncture, and I was privileged to lead several others that also are extraordinarily good. These are strange times – interesting times, to say the least. But I’ve watched this pendulum swing back and forth, and it’ll swing back the other way, guaranteed.
Question: [inaudible]
Commissioner Bratton: One of the things we attempt to do after any of these incidents is to learn from it. Were there things that, as we do our investigation, that we can learn tactically or operationally, strategically? So we will do that with this. As you’re aware, I’m in the process of creating a whole new entity – the [inaudible] Investigation Division that will report to Commissioner Tucker. That entity that is, I think, about 40 or 50 detectives will assume the responsibility for the investigation of these use-of-force type of incidents. And the idea there is to significantly improve what is already a very high standard of investigation of officer-involved use of force. So, these incidents that – the new use-of-force unit has been at the events, but the events are still being controlled by the Chief of Detective’s office at this juncture, but we’ll be transitioning to improve our ability to learn from each of these events. As to the events at the hospital that – there is, in terms of a number of points of time in medical areas in which – or in medical terminology that – and particularly the events involving this instance – in which the exact time of death may be in fact several different times depending on the medical terminology, that – so that’s why we’re not in a position, at this moment, until we get the full death certificates, etcetera, to give you that definitive time.
Unknown: Thank you, everyone. Thank you, folks.
Mayor: Thanks, everyone.
Commissioner Bratton: Thank you.
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