The doomed NYPD cop, who had been pulling numerous overtime shifts in Queens’ 105th Precinct, woke up on the morning of March 25 and told his wife he wanted to take their 1-year-old son to the park — to give her a much-needed break.
But she wasn’t having it.
On the last day of his life, NYPD Officer Jonathan Diller went to a Long Island park with his wife, Stephanie, and son, Ryan. Courtesy of Stephanie Diller
“I was like, ‘There’s no way I’m missing out on a park day with the boys. You’re not leaving me behind,’” the 29-year-old recalled in a tearful, 30-minute interview with The Post.
So the couple set off together from their Massapequa Park, LI, home to Marjorie Post Park with their baby, basking in the early spring morning.
They spent hours there playing with little Ryan until Jon kissed her goodbye and left for the night shift with the NYPD’s Community Response Team in Patrol Borough Queens South.
It was the last time the young family would be together.
Later that day, at 5:50 p.m., the 31-year-old cop encountered a career criminal in a parked car in Far Rockaway. Guy Rivera , 34, with 21 arrests on his record, allegedly pulled out a pistol and opened fire, striking Diller in the stomach, just underneath his bulletproof vest.
Police Officer Jonathan Diller with his son, Ryan, wife Stephanie and dog, Tucker. Courtesy of Stephanie Diller
The family’s future was wiped out with a single bullet.
The three-year veteran of the NYPD had called Stephanie from work early in his shift, as she walked Ryan around the neighborhood, offering to skip his lunch break so they could eat dinner together later.
When she got home from the walk, she had “a weird feeling” in her gut.
Police Officer Jonathan Diller with his son on his shoulders. Courtesy of Stephanie Diller Diller is seen above on a family outing with his wife and child. facebook/jonnymac
“I started texting Jon and he wasn’t answering so I started to get worried,” the widow recalled.
When she tracked his cell phone “I saw that he was in the hospital.”
Diller and his son playing outside together in a driveway. Courtesy of Stephanie Diller
Around 6:30 pm, Stephanie got a call from her husband’s former partner.
“It’s Jon, isn’t it?” she asked immediately.
“How bad is it?”
Stephanie Diller, the wife of slain NYPD officer Jonathan Diller, holds her son, Ryan, 1, as pallbearers carry his casket to a Hearse. James Keivom NYPD Officer Jonathan Diller is seen in an undated photo tweeted by the 105th Precinct. NYPD
“I’m not gonna lie to you, they should be airlifting you here.”
Her house began to fill with visitors.
NYPD officer Jonathan Diller and his wife Stephanie Diller at his Academy graduation. Courtesy of Stephanie Diller
“Ryan was scared. So I was hugging him,” she recalled tearfully.
An hour later, she was whisked to McKenna Elementary School and ushered into a helicopter that flew her to Jamaica Hospital.
“I didn’t breathe, I think, the entire helicopter ride,” she remembered.
Widow Stephanie Diller holds a folded flag that was draped on her husband’s casket at his funeral. REUTERS
“There was an officer with me. He was like, ‘Stephanie, you have to take a breath. I haven’t seen you breathe.’”
Once at the hospital, “I just remember saying, ‘I don’t care what happened. I just want to know when I can see him. I just want to know how he is. I’ll find out what happened after, just tell me how he is,’ ” she recalled, crying.
After a seemingly never-ending wait during surgery, her husband’s doctor walked into the room.
Stephanie Diller, the wife of slain NYPD officer Jonathan Diller, holds her son, Ryan, 1, as he reaches towards the casket of his father. James Keivom
“I’m a nurse myself so as soon as he told me ‘You need to sit down,’ I knew that Jonathan was dead,” she told The Post.
“I said, ‘He’s dead isn’t he?” The doctor confirmed the worst, “He is.”
“I remember I just felt blank. I lost the love of my life, the father of my child, my best friend, my greatest advisor, my soulmate. And I just felt blank like the whole future felt blank.”
But the worst feeling of all was when she had to drive back to their home — without him.
“Then I could literally feel my heart breaking,” she said.
“Physically, I could feel my heart in my chest. I had chest pain. My heart was breaking because I had to leave him behind. It was just a reality: going home forever without you now.”
The 2019 wedding of Stephanie and Jonathan Diller. Facebook/Jean O'Donnell
She didn’t sleep that night.
Instead, Diller spent the time watching the clock, counting the hours to when her husband should have been coming home.
“This is when he would walk in,” she said.
Father Michael Duffy presiding over the 2019 wedding of PO Jonathan Diller and wife Stephanie. Facebook/Jean O'Donnell
“This is when he would be here even if he was running late.”
As she looks toward the future, she wants to make sure her son, who she jokingly calls “Wreck it Ryan” because of mischievous behavior, gets to know his father.
“He’s so little he’s not gonna have the memories the way that I do,” she said.
“I feel like he’s the one who suffers the most.”
For the latest metro stories, top headlines, breaking news and more, visit nypost.com/metro/
Get updates delivered to you daily. Free and customizable.
Welcome to NewsBreak, an open platform where diverse perspectives converge. Most of our content comes from established publications and journalists, as well as from our extensive network of tens of thousands of creators who contribute to our platform. We empower individuals to share insightful viewpoints through short posts and comments. It’s essential to note our commitment to transparency: our Terms of Use acknowledge that our services may not always be error-free, and our Community Standards emphasize our discretion in enforcing policies. We strive to foster a dynamic environment for free expression and robust discourse through safety guardrails of human and AI moderation. Join us in shaping the news narrative together.
Most Popular
Comments / 0