Slain NYPD Officer's Funeral to Stream on YouTube
Thousands gathered at a Queens church yesterday, DNAinfo reports, to pay their respects to Rafael Ramos, one of the two NYPD officers shot and killed in Brooklyn last weekend by Ismaaiyl Brinsley. His funeral this morning will be streamed on YouTube.
Eulogies at the wake on Friday were delivered by Ramos's son, pastor and friends, the New York Daily News reports. Mayor Bill de Blasio also made a brief appearance, arriving at 9 p.m. and staying for about 10 minutes despite the Patrolmen's Benevolent Association's earlier request that the mayor not attend police funerals.
Vice President Joe Biden will attend Ramos's funeral services, scheduled to take place Saturday morning. "The President has asked Vice President Biden to attend the service for Officer Rafael Ramos and is grateful that the Vice President and Dr. Jill Biden will be traveling to New York City to attend the service on Saturday," spokesman Eric Schultz said in a statement to NBC News.
A Daily News reporter tweeted that Ramos's pastor, Biden, Governor Andrew Cuomo, de Blasio, and police commissioner Bill Bratton will all be speaking at the funeral, in that order. Watch the services here:
As many as 25,000 police officers from around the country are expected to attend this morning's services, the Daily News reports.
Funeral arrangements for Wenjian Liu, the second NYPD officer who was killed, are still pending while the department helps members of his family come to the United States from China, DNAinfo reports. Liu was filling in for Ramos's usual partner the day they were killed.
[Image via AP Images]