The funeral of NYPD Officer Jonathan Diller, the first NYPD officer to die in the line of duty in two years, is expected to draw large crowds to a Catholic church on Long Island on Saturday morning.
Diller’s funeral at St. Rose of Lima Church in Massapequa is scheduled for 10:30 a.m. on Saturday. Several elected officials plan to attend, including Mayor Eric Adams and Police Commissioner Edward Caban, who are expected to give remarks.
Elected officials, including Adams, Gov. Kathy Hochul and other Democrats, have flocked to events dedicated to honoring Diller in recent days. But some have seized on his death to criticize the city’s approach toward law enforcement and violent crime. Former President Trump, who attended Diller’s wake on Thursday, told reporters outside the funeral home that “we have to get back to law and order” as he was conspicuously flanked by uniformed officers.
Diller was shot below his protective vest on Monday while investigating an illegally parked car with his partnering officer in Far Rockaway, Queens.
Guy Rivera, who police said opened fire, was shot in the back and hospitalized in the aftermath. He was charged on Thursday with first-degree murder and faces a potential life sentence without parole.
Before Diller, the most recent NYPD officers to die in the line of duty were Jason Rivera and Wilbert Mora, who were fatally shot in 2022 after responding to a domestic dispute in Harlem.
Diller, 31, is survived by his wife and 1-year-old son.
This is a developing story and will be updated.