During his State of of the Union address Tuesday night, President Joe Biden spoke about the two NYPD officers who were shot and killed by a gunman in Harlem as they responded to a domestic violence call in January.
Officers Jason Rivera and Wilbert Mora, both of whom were posthumously promoted to detective, and another uniformed officer responded to a domestic disturbance call around 6:15 p.m. on Jan. 21 on West 135th Street by a mother who said she was fighting with her son, according to police. She did not mention any injuries, or any weapons, on the call.
After officers arrived, they went to a rear bedroom, where McNeil fired multiple times as they approached the door. The man then tried to run from the apartment, but was confronted by the third officer, rookie cop Sumit Sulan, who shot him twice.
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Rivera died in the hours after the shooting; Mora died at the hospital days later.
Biden said their deaths are not reason to "abandon our streets," but rather are why he said police departments need more funding.
Here's what the President had to say about the fallen officers:
"I recently visited the New York City Police Department days after the funerals of Officer Wilbert Mora and his partner, Officer Jason Rivera. They were responding to a 911 call when a man shot and killed them with a stolen gun. Officer Mora was 27 years old. Officer Rivera was 22. Both Dominican Americans who’d grown up on the same streets they later chose to patrol as police officers. I spoke with their families and told them that we are forever in debt for their sacrifice, and we will carry on their mission to restore the trust and safety every community deserves.
I’ve worked on these issues a long time. I know what works: Investing in crime prevention and community police officers who’ll walk the beat, who’ll know the neighborhood, and who can restore trust and safety. So let’s not abandon our streets. Or choose between safety and equal justice. Let’s come together to protect our communities, restore trust, and hold law enforcement accountable.
"That’s why the Justice Department required body cameras, banned chokeholds, and restricted no-knock warrants for its officers. That’s why the American Rescue Plan provided $350 Billion that cities, states, and counties can use to hire more police and invest in proven strategies like community violence interruption—trusted messengers breaking the cycle of violence and trauma and giving young people hope.
"We should all agree: The answer is not to Defund the police. The answer is to FUND the police with the resources and training they need to protect our communities. I ask Democrats and Republicans alike: Pass my budget and keep our neighborhoods safe. And I will keep doing everything in my power to crack down on gun trafficking and ghost guns you can buy online and make at home—they have no serial numbers and can’t be traced."
