NEW YORK (AP) 鈥� A jury will soon decide the fate of a man charged in the of New York City police officer, considering a case that a focal point during President Donald Trump鈥檚 campaign to reclaim the White House.
The fatal shooting of Jonathan Diller was cast at the time as an issue of 鈥渓aw and order鈥� by the then-Republican candidate, who attended the officer’s wake and continued to cast the Democrat-led city as a hotbed of crime throughout his run.
Among the key questions jurors will weigh is whether defendant Guy Rivera intended to shoot Diller during the March 25, 2024, traffic stop in Queens, with the prosecution and defense arguing both sides during closings on Tuesday.
Prosecutor John Kosinski said video evidence and testimony from officers showed Rivera pulled out a concealed handgun and intentionally shot Diller.
Instead of taking retribution and returning fire, the wounded Diller assisted others in disarming Rivera to make sure no one else got hurt, he said.
鈥淒iller chose life. The defendant chose differently,鈥� Kosinski said as he held up the bullet taken from the body of Diller, who was promoted to detective posthumously.
Rivera鈥檚 lawyer, Jamal Johnson, argued that prosecutors failed to prove that the shooting was intentional, which is a key requirement to secure a first-degree murder conviction. Instead, he argued that the gun accidentally discharged as another officer struggled with Rivera.
鈥淭his is not intentional. This is not targeted,鈥� Johnson said.
Trial testimony from officers on the scene that day also contradicted their own body camera footage, he argued.
Speaking before a courtroom packed with uniformed officers and Diller鈥檚 family, Johnson urged jurors to 鈥渜uestion everything鈥� in the police narrative and suggested that the officers who testified had a 鈥渕otive to lie.鈥�
鈥淭hey want you to disbelieve what the bodycam shows,鈥� he said.
Kosinski brushed aside that notion, saying, 鈥淲illiam Shakespeare couldn鈥檛 come up with the words to show the defendant didn鈥檛 fire that gun.鈥�
He said the evidence showed that Rivera intended to use the gun that day because he loaded the clip, chambered a round and switched off the safety before he stuffed it in his pocket.
鈥淲e don鈥檛 tell a story to fit the facts. The facts tell the story,鈥� Kosinski said. 鈥淗e pulled the trigger. It was in his hands. That鈥檚 what happened here.鈥�
The jury is expected to begin deliberating Wednesday in the trial, which has lasted about three weeks.
Rivera could be sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole if convicted of first-degree murder. The 36-year-old also faces other charges, including attempted murder.
The shooting happened while Diller and other officers were on patrol in the Far Rockaway section of Queens. Authorities say one of the officers spotted a suspicious object bulging from Rivera鈥檚 hoodie as he and another man walked to a parked car and got in.
Police say the officers were questioning the driver when Rivera, who was in the passenger鈥檚 seat, suddenly pulled out a gun and shot Diller.
The bullet struck the officer below his bulletproof vest, mortally wounding him. Another officer then shot and wounded Rivera.
At the time, Diller was the first NYPD officer to be killed in the line of duty in two years. Memorial services for the 31-year-old in his hometown on Long Island drew thousands of visitors, including Trump.
After visiting the funeral home with Diller’s family, Trump called his death 鈥渟uch a sad, sad event, such a horrible thing.鈥�
鈥淭he police are the greatest people we have. There鈥檚 nothing and there鈥檚 nobody like them. And this should never happen,鈥� Trump said.
___
Follow Philip Marcelo at
Copyright © 2026 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, written or redistributed.
