Brooklyn street named for late NYPD Det. Troy Patterson who spent over 30 years in close care following 1990 shooting

NEW YORK (1010 WINS) — New York City on Saturday acknowledged the work of late NYPD Detective Troy Patterson—who spent over 30 years in a slightly-responsive state after being shot in the head during an attempted robbery—by co-naming a Brooklyn roadway in his honor.

A street sign dubbing the corner of Franklin and Jefferson avenues in Bedford-Stuyvesant “Detective Troy Patterson Way” was unveiled to the sound of bagpipes at an 11 a.m. co-naming ceremony attended by Mayor Eric Adams, members of the NYPD and Patterson’s family.

Patterson died last year after spending 33 years under close medical care following an attempted robbery on Jan. 16, 1990, in which he was shot once in the head while washing his car outside his apartment. He was off-duty at the time of the shooting, and at that time, a six-year department veteran.

“I watched Troy Jr. as he struggled, you know, watching his dad in a state where he could not communicate at the levels that he wanted to,” Adams said. “And I could only imagine how painful it was. You know, not being able to do some of the basic things that father and sons do.”

His son previously told reporters that Patterson lived with limited ability to communicate, but could react to his family’s voices and on occasion smiled or even laughed. A close family friend told 1010 WINS that he was able to tap to alert his caretakers when he needed something.

“Troy was an icon, took numerous guns off the streets,” Detectives’ Endowment Association vice president Rick Simplicio said. “God knows how many lives he saved by taking those guns off the streets. Ultimately, he was a gun that cost him his life.”

Patterson was shot by a group of young men who tried to rob him of $20. Tracy Clark, the then-15-year-old gunman, wanted the money to join a local basketball tournament, police said at the time .

At his May 2023 funeral, NYPD brass credited him with making over 150 arrests, many of which involved getting guns off city streets.

Patterson’s son, who was only 5-years-old when his father was shot, thanked the city for remembering the late detective on Saturday, and said that his dad wore his badge with integrity and honor.