Slain NYPD officer Jonathan Diller’s wife honours him in moving eulogy

Murdered NYPD police officer Jonathan Diller’s wife demanded changes from lawmakers while honouring her husband with a tear-jerking eulogy on Saturday, March 30. Diller, 31, was performing a routine traffic stop in Far Rockaway when he was shot dead after a confrontation ensued involving an illegally-parked vehicle.
Diller, a father of a one-year-old boy named Ryan, was shot in Queens during an argument. The incident took place after police tried to remove Guy Rivera, the 34-year-old suspect, from the passenger seat of the car near 19-19 Mott Ave. He was later charged with first-degree murder.
Now, on the altar of St. Rose of Lima Church, his widow Stephanie Diller called his death “devastating” and “senseless.” “My husband died a hero, but he also lived as one,” Stephanie said.
About 10,000 people gathered in Long Island to honour Diller. Stephanie blasted elected officials for not doing enough to stop the increasing incidents of crimes in New York City. “How many more police officers and how many more families have to make the ultimate sacrifice before we start protecting them?” the 29-year-old said.
“I am so proud that thousands of people across the country are calling Jonathan a hero,” she said. “But the truth is he’s always been a hero to Ryan and me. The rest of the world is just catching up.”
Stephanie recalled moments from when she dated Diller and their wedding. “When you fall in love with someone, you think you can’t possibly love them anymore than you do right now. But then you get married and you say, okay, now there is no way I can love them anymore. And then you have a child with them, and guess what? You love them even more. Jonathan taught me that true love has no limit,” she said, adding that their “life was pretty much perfect, until five days ago, when everything changed forever.”
A billboard went up in honour of Diller in Times Square on Saturday.
“It’s a shame that someone who brought so much positivity in the world, was given such a negative ending. There was so much he was looking forward to . . . . seeing his friends become fathers and watching his son grow,” Stephanie said.
“I am eternally grateful that Jonathan made me Ryan’s mother. If am missing him, I can look at Ryan to feel close to him, because his son is just like him — always making people smile. And I promise to raise him even more like his dad. It’s hard to imagine how long I have to wait until I see Jonathan again. When the doors of heaven open for me one day, I hope to see Jonathan standing there looking at me just like he did on our wedding day,” she added.
Diller was posthumously promoted to detective on Saturday. His new badge number paid tribute to his son’s birthday, New York Post reported.
“Jonathan, I don’t know how I am going to live without you. I’m so amazingly grateful for every single moment we had with you,” Stephanie concluded, adding, “Rest in Peace, Jonathan, the man who captured my heart and now all of New York’s.”