Widow of slain NYPD officer Jonathan Diller covers her ears as court replays his final moments

NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK: The grieving widow of NYPD hero Jonathan Diller sat in a Queens courtroom Tuesday with her eyes shut and hands pressed over her ears, trying to block out the sound of the gunshots that killed her husband.

Stephanie Diller teared up as closing arguments unfolded in the first-degree murder trial of accused cop killer Guy Rivera. She remained seated, barely holding it together as jurors watched footage capturing Diller’s final moments.

She had previously walked out during earlier presentations of bodycam footage and crime scene images. But on Tuesday, she stayed, even as the defense pointed fingers at the police.

At one point, during summations from Queens Assistant District Attorney John Kosinski, she didn’t manage to cover her ears in time. She winced as the sound of gunfire played, and tears followed.

Defense points at cops as prosecution fires back

Defense attorney Jamal Johnson took aim at the officers involved. “All of the [Command Response Team] officers in this case, they are invested,” Johnson told jurors. “They have a motive to lie."

“You see, this is what happens when you’re stopping people and you’re doing it in a dishonest way, and we’re going to speak the truth here today,” he added. “This is how detailed we have to be in our fight for justice.”

Prosecutors pushed back. Kosinski dismantled the defense’s narrative that Rivera, a career criminal with 21 prior busts, was somehow the victim of a police cover-up.

“Almost a month, almost 30 witnesses,” the prosecutors told jurors. “Stipulations, videos, forensics: You’ve heard it all. What did we hear for two hours this morning? Police liars. Government misleading."

“We didn’t hear about one thing: This man’s actions on that day,” Kosinski said. “That’s why we’re here. This isn’t about the New York City Police Department. It’s about this defendant’s actions on that day.”

A final call and the evidence that followed

The tragedy traces back to March 25, 2024, in Far Rockaway. Diller wasn’t supposed to be working that day.

He had been at the park with his wife and their toddler son when duty called. During a lunch break hours later, he phoned Stephanie to check in. It would be the last time they spoke.

Later that day, Diller and his partners believed Rivera and an associate were casing a local business for a robbery when they approached.

What happened next played out in stark detail before the jury.

Prosecutors showed bodycam footage that appears to capture Rivera firing the fatal shots, mortally wounding Diller. According to testimony, he was smiling as he was taken down and handcuffed.

The footage had already shaken the courtroom earlier in the trial.

NYPD Detective Derval Whyte broke down on the stand while describing what he saw.

“I just watched my friend get shot for no reason,” Whyte testified.

“He’s on his back, he’s motionless,” he said of Diller. “I heard him say, ‘I’ve been shot.’ I went over to find the gunshot wound. I rolled him back and forth and found the bullet wound above his belly.”

When asked about the footage itself, Whyte added, “That’s the defendant. He looks like he’s smiling.”

Forensic evidence backed up the prosecution’s case. DNA tests found Rivera’s DNA on two firearms recovered at the scene, including the .380-caliber handgun used in the shooting and a 9 mm weapon stashed in the glove compartment of a Kia Soul where Rivera had been sitting before his arrest.

Now, the case is heading to the jury. Deliberations are expected to begin on Wednesday.