Officers Killed In New York Shooting

A police officer and sheriff’s deputy were shot and killed near the city of Syracuse, New York this week. The slayings underscored the dangers faced by police and an increase in attacks on officers nationwide, especially in New York.

A member of the Syracuse Police Department and the Onondaga County Sheriff’s Department were shot and killed in the town of Salina outside of Syracuse. The two were killed responding to a call on Sunday evening.

The officers responded to a report of a stolen vehicle in the city of Syracuse, leading to the home in Salina. The suspect opened fire on police, striking and killing both the deputy and the officer.

The suspect was also killed in the incident.

Onondaga County Sheriff Tobias Shelley (D) said that there was no ongoing threat against the public.

Syracuse, NY: Around midnight, more than 100 police officers stood at attention as two white vans passed by, carrying the fallen officers from the hospital to the medical examiner’s office.

Police cars and fire trucks flashed their lights in a silent tribute. pic.twitter.com/BcSxvgt6um

— Julia 🇺🇸 (@Jules31415) April 15, 2024

The killings came after the New York Police Department (NYPD) reported an increase in attacks against officers over the last year.

According to the data released by the NYPD, attacks on its officers have increased significantly over the last five years. This includes almost 5,000 attacks on police in 2022, which represented a 20% increase over 2021.

Furthermore, the first three quarters of 2023 showed an increased rate of attacks on police, with more than 4,000 such incidents in the first nine months of the year alone.

Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Hendry said that the incidents were “not only a record, it’s a full-blown epidemic.”

Hendry said that the attacks on officers “didn’t come out of nowhere.” He added that the “dangerous environment has been building for years.”

He said that the situation was “not going to get better until those who attack police officers are consistently prosecuted and kept in jail. And that won’t happen unless New Yorkers keep speaking up to demand an end to the chaos.”

There have also been an increasing number of incidents involving the almost 200,000 migrants who have arrived in New York City over the last two years, including an uptick in crime.