A Queens man has been sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole after he was convicted last month of fatally shooting a New York City police officer in 2015.
Demetrius Blackwell, 37, was sentenced on Tuesday by Queens Supreme Judge Gregory Lasak who blasted him for the heartless shooting death of police officer Brian Moore.
‘You’re a cold, calculating killer,’ Lasak told to Blackwell. ‘You realize what you did. You killed a man for no reason.’
Blackwell had been found guilty of first-degree murder in November by a jury who deliberated for five hours.
Demetrius Blackwell (above on Tuesday) has been sentenced to life in prison after he was convicted last month of fatally shooting Brian Moore, a New York City police officer, in 2015
Blackwell (above left in 2015) had been found guilty of the first-degree murder of Moore (right) in November by a jury who deliberated for five hours
Blackwell (above in 2015) was sentenced on Tuesday by Queens Supreme Judge Gregory Lasak who blasted him for the heartless shooting death of police officer Brian Moore
He was also convicted of attempted murder of 25-year-old Moore’s partner, Erik Jansen, and criminal possession of a weapon.
Moore, the son of a New York Police Department sergeant, on duty in Queens with his partner on May 2, 2015 when they encountered Blackwell.
Authorities say the Blackwell opened fire, striking Moore twice in the head.
He died two days later and was posthumously promoted to Detective First-Grade. His partner wasn’t hurt.
The officer’s mother, Irene Moore, spoke before Blackwell was sentenced and said that the bond between a parent and a child was the ‘closest on Earth,’ WABC reported.
The officer’s mother, Irene Moore (above), spoke before Blackwell was sentenced and said that the bond between a parent and a child was the ‘closest on Earth.’
Moore, the son of a New York Police Department sergeant, on duty in Queens with his partner on May 2, 2015 when they encountered Blackwell, who shot him twice in the head. Blackwell was also convicted of criminal possession of a weapon (above) in the deadly 2015 shooting
‘My bond, my soul was abruptly severed from me,’ the heartbroken mother said of her son’s murder. ‘For me there is no moving on.’
When Blackwell was found guilty, she said: ‘At the end of the day, there was justice done for Brian’s killing but it is a hole and it is a void that will never ever be filled.’
Queens Assistant District Attorney Dan Saunders said, ‘He’s remorseless and just doesn’t give a damn.’
At the time of his death, Moore had amassed 150 arrests as an NYPD officer and had several awards for his service.
Moore was working in an elite anti-crime unit that patrolled in plainclothes and unmarked cars looking for suspicious activity.