Governor Hochul Honors 55 Police Officers Who Sacrificed their Lives in Service to their Communities

Governor Kathy Hochul honored the lives of 55 officers from eight police departments today at a New York State Police Memorial ceremony in Albany. The officers’ names have been added to the black granite walls of the memorial, which now includes the names of 1,772 men and women from 150 police departments and sheriff’s offices across the state, as well as six federal agencies who died in service to New Yorkers. Governor Hochul also issued a announcement Declared May 9 as Police Memorial Day and directed that state landmarks be illuminated blue to honor the sacrifice of those officers whose names are inscribed on the memorial and honor the service of all officers across the state.

“Every day, selfless men and women of police departments across the state risk their lives to protect us, knowing they may not be able to return home,” Governor Hochul said. “Today, we honor these 55 officers and join their loved ones in remembering their unwavering commitment and dedication to our safety.”

“Today, we honor and honor police officers across New York State who paid the ultimate price for keeping us safe,” Lieutenant Governor Delgado said“May we never forget their bravery and courage. May we never forget the sacrifice they made to protect us all.”

The following landmarks will be lit blue tonight:

• 
  The World Trade Center
• 
  Governor Mario M. Cuomo Bridge
• 
  Kosciuszko Bridge
• 
  H. Carl McCall SUNY Building
• 
  National Education Building
• 
  Alfred E. Smith State Office Building
• 
  empire square
• 
  State Fairgrounds – Main Entrance and Expo Center
• 
  Niagara Waterfall
• 
  Albany International Airport Gateway
• 
  MTA LIRR – Penn Station East End Gateway
• 
  Fairport Elevator Bridge over the Erie Canal
• 
  Moynihan Train Hall

This afternoon’s ceremony honored 55 police officers who were injured in the line of duty or lost their lives to illnesses related to COVID-19 or Ground Zero.

death on duty

new york police department

• 
  Detective Wilbert Mora was shot when he received a call reporting a domestic dispute at the apartment at 119 West 135th Street in Harlem. (January 23, 2022)
• 
  Detective Jason Rivera was shot when he received a call reporting a domestic dispute at the apartment at 119 West 135th Street in Harlem. (January 21, 2022)

Rochester Police Department

• 
  Officers Anthony P. Mazurkiewicz and Officer Sino Seng were in plain clothes conducting surveillance in an unmarked vehicle when they were ambushed and shot by the suspects. Officer Mazurkiewicz, who was in the driver’s seat, suffered fatal gunshot wounds. His partner, Officer Seng, sustained non-fatal injuries and was able to return fire. The suspect fled the scene and took shelter in an empty house when he was located by responders and taken into custody. (July 21, 2022)

Yonkers Police Department

• 
  Detective Sergeant Frank D. Gualdino, in uniform, was driving a police vehicle to oversee officers handling traffic details when he was head-on hit by another vehicle. (December 1, 2022)

The following people have died from exposure to COVID-19. The names of military officers who died from COVID were first added to the memorial in 2021; the memorial now contains the names of 25 people who died related to COVID:

new york police department

• 
  Officer David A. Mathura (March 6, 2022)
• 
  Officer Daniel J. Sanchez (January 19, 2022)
• 
  Constable Leonard Swanson (February 5, 2022)

Nassau County Police Department

• 
  Detective Hector M. Nunez (December 8, 2021)
• 
  Detective Charles C. Vroom IV (September 12, 2021)

Niagara Falls Police Department

• 
  Lieutenant Christina Zell (November 7, 2022)

Ground Zeroing Deaths from Ground-Related Diseases

Following the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center on September 11, 2001, the following individuals became seriously ill and died while working at Ground Zero. The names of officers who died from Ground Zero-related illnesses were first added to the memorial in 2008, and there are now 380 in total.

new york state police

• 
  Sgt. F. Brent Chomyszak (August 23, 2022)
• 
  Major Roderick C. Covington (March 31, 2022)
• 
  Soldier Scott P. Enser (March 20, 2021)
• 
  Trooper Joseph J. Mecca, Jr. (December 2, 2020)
• 
  Sgt. Ivan M. Morales (October 28, 2022)
• 
  Trooper Michael R. O’Donnell (December 24, 2020)
• 
  Sgt. James G. Sweeney (March 6, 2021)

New York State Environmental Police

• 
  Lt. Paul C. Adam (September 8, 2015)
• 
  Police Officer Lawrence E. Cabana (August 6, 2022)
• 
  Investigator Thomas J. Graham (September 21, 2013)

Port Authority Police Department of New York and New Jersey

• 
  Constable Frederick G. Maley (July 17, 2022)

new york police department

• 
  Constable Chanda D. Barnes (April 25, 2021)
• 
  Sergeant Hugh Bartlett (September 12, 2021)
• 
  Sgt. William P. Brautigam, Jr. (January 31, 2021)
• 
  Detective Barbara A. Burnett (December 30, 2021)
• 
  Sgt. Pedro A. Candia (April 15, 2022)
• 
  Detective Enrico J. Crisafi (November 28, 2021)
• 
  Detective Michael A. DeVecchis (January 16, 2020)
• 
  Sgt. Cornelius J. Douglas (June 24, 2021)
• 
  Detective Pedro A. Foruria, Sr. (August 25, 2021)
• 
  Sgt. Michael S. Fuller (July 26, 2021)
• 
  Officer Hector M. Gonzalez Jr. (April 7, 2021)
• 
  Detective Rowland A. Gray (June 22, 2021)
• 
  Detective Patrick J. Hogan (December 31, 2021)
• 
  Constable John Holland (December 18, 2020)
• 
  Detective Michael A. Houlahan (March 25, 2020)
• 
  Police Officer Dennis J. Howard (August 5, 2020)
• 
  Police Officer Denise A. Jones (September 6, 2021)
• 
  Constable William Kelley (October 3, 2021)
• 
  Detective Brian J. Marley (February 17, 2021)
• 
  Detective George C. Moreno (July 30, 2021)
• 
  Detective Terence P. Mulvey (December 1, 2021)
• 
  Officer Thomas M. O’Reilly, Jr. (June 17, 2021)
• 
  Detective Nicholas F. Ortiz (April 5, 2021)
• 
  Officer Neil E. Porter (October 7, 2021)
• 
  Police Officer Laurence J. Prehn (November 10, 2021)
• 
  Officer Michael J. Reass (September 21, 2021)
• 
  Officer Steven L. Rodriguez (June 9, 2021)
• 
  Officer Michael Romano (January 16, 2021)
• 
  Detective Frank Rosado (December 19, 2019)
• 
  Sgt. Christopher M. Tully (August 14, 2021)
• 
  Officer Matthew S. Von Seydewitz (January 27, 2020)
• 
  Detective James M. Ward (January 17, 2022)

Nassau County Police Department

• 
  Officer Robert D. Negri Jr. (September 28, 2011)
• 
  Detective Matthew A. Perlungher (August 4, 2021)

The State Division of Criminal Justice Services is coordinating the ceremony and the Officers Memorial Advisory Committee. The Office of State General Services maintains the monument, and its commissioners also serve on the committee.

Department of Criminal Justice Commissioner Rossana Rosado said“We come together to express our deep gratitude for the service and sacrifice of these brave men and women, and to express our heartfelt thanks to the family and friends who live with the shadow of their loss every day. Thank you for sharing about your loved ones and their legacy A legacy to our fellow New Yorkers. We are humbled by your presence today and pledge to honor their memory forever.”

Jeanette Moy, Office of the Commissioner of General Services says“The NYPD Memorial honors those individuals who have sacrificed their lives in the line of duty and ensures that their courage, dedication and sacrifice are remembered forever. We at the OGS provide us with this special memorial and a space for the memory of our state’s fallen officers Family, friends and colleagues can mourn their loss and honor their legacy as guardians of peace in our communities.”

The memorial is based on a design concept developed by Colleen Dillon Bergman, daughter of Emerson J. Dillon Jr., who died in the line of duty in 1974 after serving 16 years with the New York State Police. Bergman also said the names of police officers, regardless of rank, should be placed on the memorial. In a letter to the committee overseeing the creation of the memorial, she explained: “The feeling of loss is the same no matter what department they come from.” Those words are inscribed on the memorial.

Memorial Inclusion Criteria

is included on the monument, the individual must be a police officer as defined by the state code of criminal procedure, or employed as a federal law enforcement officer performing the same or substantially similar duties as defined by that law. Applications for monument listing must be made to DCJS by the agency employing these officers.

In addition to Commissioners Rosado and Moy, the following serve on the Memorial Advisory Committee: New York State Police PBA Chairman Charles Murphy, Metropolitan Transit Authority Police Benevolent Association President Michael O’Meara, New York State Police Chiefs Association Executive Director Patrick Phelan, New York Peter R. Kehoe, executive director of the State Sheriffs Association; Patrick J. Lynch, president of the New York City Patrolman Benevolent Association; Andrew Rakowsky, chapter president of the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association; and Richard Wells, president of the New York Police Conference.

this Division of Criminal Justice Services Provides critical support to all aspects of the state’s criminal justice system, including but not limited to: training law enforcement officers and other criminal justice professionals; overseeing law enforcement certification programs; ensuring the proper functioning of breathalyzers and speed equipment used by local law enforcement; administering criminal justice Grants; Analyze statewide crime and program data; Provide research support; Oversee county probation departments and alternatives to incarceration programs; Coordinate youth justice policy. Follow DCJS Facebook and Twitter.