As we previously discussed, things did not go well for New York Governor Kathy Hochul when she showed up at the wake for slain NYPD Officer Jonathan Diller. She was confronted by other NYPD officers and one man reportedly told her that Diller’s blood was on her hands. She left shortly thereafter to the applause of some of the cops in attendance. When she was asked about the disturbing encounter by the media that next day, however, she told a different story from the one we first heard. Hochul claims that nobody told her to leave the gathering. She also says that Officer Diller’s family was “welcoming.” Of course, it certainly didn’t look that way in the videos that leaked out on social media. (NY Post)
Gov. Kathy Hochul said she “understands” why slain NYPD Detective Jonathan Diller’s family is “outraged,” but insisted Saturday she was never told to leave the hero cop’s wake — despite being abruptly told “his blood is on your hands.”
“I would do it again, and that’s my job,” said Hochul, defending her decision to attend Diller’s wake a day earlier on Long Island.
“We were told the family is welcoming. We always check, and they said to come, and I went. And no one told me to leave,” Hochul also told Politico during an Easter event at the governor’s mansion in Albany.
It’s probably true that Diller’s widow didn’t directly tell the Governor to leave. She is probably far too polite and was wrapped up in the mourning process at the time. It’s not even entirely clear if any of the police officers outside used the word “leave” when calling her out. But the phrase “his blood is on your hands” should have made the sentiment more than clear.
Hochul claims that her team “was told” that the family was “welcoming and they said to come.” But who was it who told them this? Did she call the family first or did they reach out to her office? The latter seems unlikely in the extreme. She went further, saying she would do it again because that’s “her job.”
Perhaps so, but she also obviously knew that would be issues. She told MSNBC that she spoke to the widow at the wake and conceded that everyone was “just so distraught – and, yes, there’s a lot of anger.” Perhaps it’s just me, but “distraught and angry” doesn’t really sound the same as “welcoming.” Then again, she’s been fairly vague about all of this. Was she talking about the family or the police? Because the attitude of the cops has been pretty easy to discern.
It’s impossible to say at this point because most of the events in question unfolded inside the funeral home. That brings us to another aspect of Hochul’s performance. We only learned this after the fact, but when Hochul and her aide arrived, there were a large number of people waiting in line to get in and pay their respects. The Governor cut in front of all of them and simply went inside. Perhaps she didn’t feel comfortable waiting in line with a bunch of police officers who didn’t want her there. Or maybe she just felt that her time was more valuable than anyone else’s so she shouldn’t be forced to wait. Either way, it was a rather rude performance for such a solemn event.
It’s not as if the Governor seems to be in the mood to apologize, but if she really wanted to make the situation better she could get to work on repealing the bail reform laws that led to Officer Diller’s death. That won’t bring the man back or make it so his baby will have a father again, but it would go a long way toward shoring up her relationship with law enforcement. She’s talked about making some changes in the past, but it’s really been little more than words. I somehow doubt she’ll see the error of her ways and do the right thing at this point. Of course, I would welcome the chance to be proven wrong.