Widow of slain NYPD officer breaks down as sea of officers flood courtroom

The widow of NYPD officer Jonathan Diller broke down in tears surrounded by a sea of blue in a New York City courtroom as prosecutors gave a graphic description of the bullet that “ripped through” the married father after a man allegedly fired multiple shots at him during a routine traffic stop. 

Stephanie Diller walked out of the Queens courtroom before body camera footage of the 2024 shooting death of her husband was played in the murder trial of 35-year-old Guy Rivera in Queens Supreme Court Tuesday.

“[Rivera] took out his gun and pointed it at officer Diller,” Assistant District Attorney Ken Zawistowski said during the trial’s opening statements. 

“He shot officer Diller underneath his bulletproof vest, causing his intestines to be ripped through and causing his iliac artery to be severed — one of the body’s most vital arteries,” Zawistowski continued.

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“The bullet ripped through his abdomen and, in the last moments of his life, he ripped the gun from the killer’s hands.”

The body camera footage showed the moments officers attempted to revive Diller in the immediate aftermath of the shooting. 

Dozens of police officers sat silently in the courtroom gallery for the first day of Rivera’s trial, filling two overflow rooms and surrounding Diller’s widow as jurors listened to opening statements. Several officers teared up during the proceedings. 

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Rivera, a career criminal with nearly two dozen prior arrests, according to police, pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder charges after prosecutors said he gunned down Diller in Far Rockaway March 25, 2024. 

The incident unfolded after Diller inspected a suspicious vehicle parked outside a T-Mobile store, and Rivera, who was seated in the passenger seat, allegedly fired three rounds at the officer, striking him in the stomach. 

Rivera’s attorney, Erin Darcy, claimed shots were fired in “an unintentional discharge” as a police sergeant attempted to pull Rivera out of the vehicle, making the NYPD responsible for Diller’s death.

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Rivera was also shot during the confrontation. 

On Tuesday, Zawistowski pointed to the fact that Rivera faced a choice when Diller approached his vehicle.

“One, surrender his firearm peacefully and inform the officers that he was in possession of two loaded firearms — one tucked in his jacket pocket and the other in the glove compartment in front of him,” Zawistowski said.

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“The defendant had choices. That day, he chose violence.”

In a statement, NYPD PBA President Patrick Hendry promised that NYPD officers would continue to appear in the courtroom to support Diller’s loved ones as Rivera’s trial unfolds. 

“Jonathan Diller was a talented person who could have succeeded at any profession that he would have chosen,” Hendry said, according to the New York Post. “But he knew he had a mission in life — to help people and save lives. And he did that every day as a New York City Police officer.

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“Unfortunately, his family is going to have to relive this nightmare for the next three weeks.”

Rivera’s attorney and the NYPD PBA did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital’s request for comment. 

Candace Cameron Bure says she walked into ‘dark and demonic’ adult-themed party

Candace Cameron Bure once found herself at an “S&M sex” party, which quickly became “dark and demonic.”

During the Tuesday episode of her eponymous podcast, the “Full House” star, 49, opened up about the “underground” Hollywood party she accidentally attended with her husband, Val Bure. 

“I have some really weird embarrassing moments,” said Bure. “Although I shouldn’t say embarrassing for me, they were more shameful of going to places where I thought, like, ‘Oh, this person’s a friend, and I’m going to be cool and do this.’”

Because of that, Bure found herself at an “S&M sex thing that ended up being so dark and demonic.”

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“We walked in, and my eyeballs were popping out of my head because I saw stuff I’ve never seen before in my life,” she recalled. “I’m looking at Val, going like, ‘How are we here? What is happening?’”

“We made a hard U-turn and walked right out of there. It just was so slimy and weird,” she added. “We just had no idea what we were walking into, and it was so disgusting and gross.”

In November, Bure opened up about why she rejected several Hollywood scripts in her teens and 20s due to her beliefs surrounding sexuality.

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“I was just honestly never the kid that wanted to do the risky thing, that wanted to use my body or my sexuality to get ahead. … My morality meant more to me, and my character has always meant more to me than the success of things. … That’s a part of inherently me — not because I’m trying to be the righteous person, but I just genuinely was not that kid that wanted to do that,” she said on the “Stay True” podcast.

“So, it made for some of those decisions when I would get presented a script that went against my own moral boundaries. … It was an easy decision to say, ‘No, I don’t want to do that,’ because I genuinely didn’t want to do those things.”

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“There were definitely moments where I would get scripts … the sex part of it comes into it, and I was like, ‘I’m just not doing that.’ Maybe it was out of embarrassment, maybe whatever the reason, but I’m like, ‘Nope, not going on that.’ Easy to say no.”

Those decisions eventually helped her lean into her true self. 

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“I think that’s where we see a lot of younger stars, when they do transition into that, ‘Oh, I’m 18, I’m 21,’ and they want to prove they’re older now and not seen as a child. That’s where those big, important decisions come in. What do you do with the opportunity?” Bure said.

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“The world is always going to criticize, and you can’t please everyone. Sometimes you just let it roll off,” she remarked. “”And, so, I think you just have to take it with a grain of salt. I know who I am because I know who God tells me that I am, and I have such a loving and wonderful family at home.”

“It’s very easy to stay rooted and planted around the people that I love. … When there are unwanted opinions, you just go, ‘OK, you can have them, you’re welcome to them. I don’t need to look at them or think about them.’”