Lengthy Island cops ripped Gov. Kathy Hochul for bragging about bringing down gun violence hours earlier than an officer was shot within the face by a deranged murder suspect on Thursday.
An unidentified 33-year-old county police officer was shot within the face whereas authorities executed a search warrant at a North Bay Shore residence on Thursday, officers stated. — at some point after the governor held an occasion on the island to tout anti-crime initiatives.
“The irony shouldn’t be misplaced on us that the governor was simply on Lengthy Island yesterday saying that crime goes down and right this moment we now have a Suffolk County Police Officer shot,” Suffolk PBA President Lou Civello instructed The Publish.
“We’ve been coping with this now for years, and every time a brand new band-aid will get utilized, we discover one other circumstance that they missed,” Civello stated.
The police union head stated he appreciates that Albany below Hochul has permitted modifications to prison bail and discovery legal guidelines after they’d been considerably loosened in 2018 below then-Gov. Andrew Cuomo. These lax insurance policies have been criticized for permitting violent criminals to stroll free and doubtlessly reoffend.
However Civello stated Hochul must push for extra.
“We’re appreciative that she’s offering funding right here. We’re appreciative that she is attempting to make some tweaks to the legal guidelines and there’s been some constructive motion, nevertheless it actually simply doesn’t go far sufficient,” he stated.
Hochul held an occasion on the Suffolk County Police Academy Wednesday, cheering a 24% drop in murders on Lengthy Island from 2023 to 2024 and 40% between 2021 and 2024.
“I do know greater than anybody, our work is at all times removed from finished in terms of defending folks as a result of one crime, one capturing, one homicide is one too many,” Hochul stated.
The governor did acknowledge that there’s been a slight uptick in murders in Suffolk County particularly, however stated “statistically it doesn’t matter as a result of it’s going from 14 to 16.”
The identify of the officer who was shot Thursday had not been launched, however Catalina stated he’s a Navy vet and is married with three children.
“This officer’s wound was actually a half inch away from his eye. It was up on his cheek. It fractured his cheekbone, and it was lodged beneath his ear,” Dr. James Vosswinkel of Stony Brook College Medical Middle stated.
The surgeon stated the bullet was half an inch from killing the officer, who is predicted to make a “full and full restoration,”Vosswinkel stated.
Cops have been executing the search warrant in North Bay Shore for Nieves Reyes, 48, who’s accused of stabbing to loss of life his coworker, 66-year-old Eugene Allen. Reyes was in custody of Suffolk police Thursday night time, and had been slapped with homicide and tried homicide expenses, cops stated.
The PBA is looking out Hochul simply because the Democratic governor is heading into reelection mode. Help of cops will doubtless play a serious position as Hochul tries to make the case that she’s improved public security after getting repeatedly slammed over crime throughout her first run in 2022.
