Edward Byrne (police officer)

Edward Byrne (February 21, 1966 – February 26, 1988) was a police officer in the New York City Police Department who became well known in the United States after he was murdered in the line of duty.

Edward Byrne
Born(1966-02-21)February 21, 1966
New York City, U.S.
DiedFebruary 26, 1988(1988-02-26) (aged 22)
New York City, U.S.
Police career
DepartmentNew York City Police Department (NYPD)
Service years1986–1988
Rank1986 – Commissioned as a police officer
Badge no.14072

Byrne's father had also been an NYPD officer. Byrne had joined the NYPD on July 15, 1986, and was stationed in the 103rd Precinct in Jamaica, Queens. Prior to joining the NYPD, Byrne was in the New York City Transit Police.

Murder

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Around 3:30 a.m. on February 26, 1988, Byrne was sitting in his marked patrol car on 107th Ave. and Inwood St. in the South Jamaica section of Queens in New York City. He was assigned to keep an eye on the house of a local Guyanese immigrant named Arjune,[a] who had repeatedly called the police to report illegal activities on his street. The house had been previously firebombed on two occasions and the owner repeatedly threatened. Despite the recent violence and an ongoing crime wave overtaking South Queens, Byrne was assigned to the post alone.

As Byrne sat in his car, another driver pulled up beside him. Two men exited, and one of them knocked on the passenger side window of Byrne's cruiser while a second man crept up on the driver's side and shot Byrne in the head five times with a .38 caliber pistol. Two other men acted as lookouts. Byrne later died at the hospital. He had just turned 22.[1]

The murder prompted national outrage. President Ronald Reagan personally called the Byrne family to offer condolences.[2] Then-Vice President George H. W. Bush carried Byrne's badge with him during his 1988 presidential campaign.[3]

The four killers were identified as Philip Copeland, Todd Scott, Scott Cobb, and David McClary.[4] All four were apprehended within a week of the murder and were eventually convicted. Copeland, Scott, and Cobb were convicted after a trial of murder in the second degree and criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree. McClary was convicted later as the shooter in a separate trial of murder in the second degree and criminal possession of a weapon in the second degree. All four were sentenced to 25 years to life by Queens Supreme Court Justice Thomas A. Demakos, who had presided over the trials.[5] Cobb, in a videotaped confession that was played at trial, provided graphic details of the killing, told how the participants had bragged of it afterward in the aftermath, and indicated that the killing had been ordered from jail by the drug dealer Howard "Pappy" Mason,[6] the leader of their gang. Mason was sentenced to life in prison in 1994 for drug racketeering and for ordering Byrne's murder.[7]

 
Cars parked on the sidewalk on 91st Ave. outside the 103rd Precinct in 2011

Legacy

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Note

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  1. ^ Arjune goes by this single name.

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Marzulli, John (February 24, 2008). "20 yrs. ago, a cop was shot & NYPD began crushing drug gangs". New York Daily News. Retrieved May 8, 2015.
  2. ^ Messing, Philip (November 18, 2014). "Killers who shot rookie cop 26 years ago denied parole". New York Post. Retrieved May 8, 2015.
  3. ^ Brown, Ethan (2007). Snitch: Informants, Cooperators and the Corruption of Justice. PublicAffairs. p. 32. ISBN 978-1-58648-633-4.
  4. ^ Harshbager, Rebecca (September 3, 2012). "NYPD cop killers haven't shown remorse for 1988 death, relatives and politicians say". New York Post. Retrieved May 8, 2015.
  5. ^ Fried, Joseph P. (March 30, 1989). "2 Juries Convict All 3 Defendants In Queens Murder of Officer Byrne". The New York Times. Retrieved May 8, 2015.
  6. ^ Fried, Joseph P. (October 14, 1988). "Officer's Killing 'a Message to Police'". The New York Times. Retrieved May 8, 2015.
  7. ^ Fried, Joseph P. (January 9, 1994). "Drug Dealer Is Sentenced to Life For Ordering Killing of Officer". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 26, 2020.
  8. ^ Philbin, Tom (2011). The Killer Book of Infamous Murders. Sourcebooks. p. 29. ISBN 978-1-4022-3746-1.
  9. ^ "Police Officer Edward Byrne Park". nycgovparks.org.
  10. ^ Nolan, Caitlin (May 7, 2015). "Long Island high school baseball team honors fallen NYPD cop Brian Moore". New York Daily News. Retrieved May 10, 2015.