Murder of Russel Timoshenko

Russel Timoshenko
File:Police Department City of New York.svg
Police career
Department	New York City Police Department
Service years	2006 – 2007
Rank	Sworn in as an Officer - 2006 Promoted to Detective - 2008
Badge no.	25169
Awards	- NYPD Medal of Honor

Russel Timoshenko (August 18, 1983 – July 14, 2007) was a 23 year-old New York Police Department (NYPD) police officer who was shot and killed on July 9, 2007, after pulling over a stolen BMW automobile in New York City's Crown Heights, Brooklyn neighborhood. After a four day manhunt that stretched across three states, all three suspects were eventually apprehended and convicted — two for of murder, and the third for weapons possession. At his widely attended funeral, Timoshenko was posthumously promoted to the rank of Detective. The case garnered national media attention because the murder weapon was an illegally-obtained handgun. This sparked widespread debate over gun control laws in New York City, and over the process by which firearms are traced by police departments.

Murder incident

Timoshenko and his partner, Officer Herman Yan, had been driving in a marked 71st precinct police car on routine patrol in Crown Heights, with Timoshenko riding as the passenger when they spotted the 2003 BMW headed westbound on Lefferts Avenue. The officers scanned the BMW's license plate on a computer in their police car. When the check came back, it indicated that the plate was assigned to a 2007 Mitsubishi Outlander, not the BMW. Timoshenko and Yan signaled for the vehicle to pull over, and the driver complied, turning north onto Rogers Avenue, where both officers got out of their car and approached the stopped vehicle.

Before the officers arrived at the front of the car, Dexter Bostic, 34, opened fire with a .45 caliber handgun, striking Officer Timoshenko twice in the face. Yan had been approaching on the driver's side, while Timoshenko was coming up from the passenger's side. Robert Ellis, 34, shot Yan with a 9mm handgun, striking him in the arm and chest — though he was able to return fire, saved by his ballistic vest. A third suspect, 29 year-old Lee Woods, was driving the BMW at the time of the shooting. After shooting the officers, the three suspects fled the scene.

Timoshenko was rushed to Kings County Hospital Center once medical personnel arrived at the scene. Each of the two bullets that struck Timoshenko cut across his spinal cord, just beneath his brain, which left him unable to breathe on his own or to move his muscles. According to doctors, he had no oxygen for 15 to 20 minutes after he was shot because of his initial paralysis. Five days later, Timoshenko died while on life support machines that allowed him to breathe. After tests on the previous day determined that he had no brain activity, doctors turned off the respirator and pronounced him dead on July 14 at 4:14 p.m.

Aftermath

Manhunt

File:Long Island Mercator projection.png

Map featuring areas covered in the manhunt

Police apprehended Lee Woods at his home in Queens, New York on July 10. City detectives were tipped to the whereabouts of Bostic and Ellis on the afternoon of July 11, after contacting a neighbor who, unaware of the suspects' fugitive status, assisted the killers in their escape by driving them across Long Island, from Far Rockaway to Port Jefferson, New York, before riding a ferry across the Sound to Bridgeport, Connecticut. They then drove west, stopping at a supermarket in Tarrytown, New York, where they purchased food and water, before continuing on to Pennsylvania, according to New York City Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly. Remnants of the same food the men purchased were found in a Pennsylvania forest, where investigators had eventually tracked the suspects. Hundreds of law enforcement officers were involved in the manhunt, using helicopters and bloodhounds to assist with the search.The neighbor initially dropped off Bostic and Ellis about 14 miles from where Bostic was finally arrested in Pocono Township, Pennsylvania. Both were extradited on July 12 from Pennsylvania after being captured within days of fleeing. Police brought Timoshenko's handcuffs and used them to apprehend Ellis during his arrest. Because he was unaware the men were fugitives, the neighbor was not charged.

Mourning

Officer Timoshenko had served with the NYPD for one year and six months. He was twenty-three years old at the time of his death. Mayor Michael Bloomberg announced that Timoshenko had been posthumously promoted to Detective, calling it "a small measure of our appreciation for the supreme sacrifice that Russel made, and to honor his life."

Over 30,000 people attended Timoshenko's funeral in Flatlands, Brooklyn, where Bloomberg delivered the eulogy, praising the fallen officer, stating, “By stopping that car, he and Officer Yan helped us capture three career criminals whose appetite for evil knew no bounds — saving who knows how many future victims, people who will never know how lucky they are.”

Detective Timoshenko’s name is engraved on Panel 16-West, Line 26 of the National Law Enforcement Officers Memorial in Washington, DC.

Awards and recognition

On June 16, 2008, the parents of Timoshenko accepted the New York City Police Department Medal of Honor, the highest law enforcement medal given by the NYPD, which was awarded posthumously to their son by mayor Michael Bloomberg and NYPD Commissioner Kelly. At the same ceremony, the officer was posthumously promoted to the rank of Detective First Grade. On October 6, 2009, Timoshenko's parents accepted the James S. Brady Law Enforcement Award, given to their son in recognition of his commitment to public safety through his outstanding law enforcement career. The award was presented by NYPD Commissioner Kelly.

Trial

All three suspects were arraigned and charged with aggravated first degree murder for the killing of Timoshenko, and other charges related to the wounding of Yan. They faced life in prison if convicted. The city's police union and other parties asked federal prosecutors to take over the case so that the three suspects could face the death penalty, but the case was tried by the Brooklyn district attorney after federal officials refused to prosecute the case. Although the three defendants were being prosecuted simultaneously, there was a separate jury assigned to each of them. On December 17, 2008, Robert Ellis was found not guilty on the charges of aggravated murder and attempted aggravated murder, but was found guilty on 3 charges of gun possession. On January 14, 2009, a judge sentenced Ellis to 15 years in prison on the gun possession charges. On December 19, 2008, Dexter Bostic was found guilty of aggravated murder, attempted aggravated murder, and 3 charges of gun possession; he was sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole. On March 16, 2009, Lee Woods was found guilty of aggravated murder, attempted aggravated murder, and 3 charges of gun possession. He was also sentenced to life in prison without the possibility of parole.

Gun legislation

Several press accounts reported that Timoshenko was shot by an unlicensed gun that came from Virginia. Previous reports indicated that the gun dealer had previously been indicted for his illegal gun sales. The gun shop in question is now closed, and the dealer has been stripped of his license. Because the gun was used by a person with a criminal history, and because the NYPD was denied requests to lookup the seller of the gun, legislators attempted to make it easier for law enforcement to carry out their investigative duties.

In September 2007, Senator Charles Schumer questioned the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) at an official hearing looking into why the NYPD's request for information on who had sold the gun (used to kill Timoshenko) was denied. The NYPD asked the ATF for data about which dealers in Virginia supplied the most crime guns—like the one used to kill Officer Timoshenko—so they could identify the traffickers. The ATF refused that request for data, citing the Tiahrt Amendment, which restricts cities' access to and use of ATF trace data). The New York Daily News ran a headline editorial in support for repealing the amendment, entitled "Congress Owes This Hero."

At a hearing in Washington D.C. with Michael J. Sullivan, now director of the ATF, Schumer stated, "If this is true, it is an outrage. If it is true, it is a horrible example of gun laws gone wrong." Sullivan replied to this specific charge, saying, "I'm not sure why the request was turned down," and pledged to look into the matter and provide further clarification in writing.

The complications regarding the illegal firearm used in Timoshenko's murder inspired new laws passed in New York City, which authorized new penalties, touted as "part of the toughest illegal gun possession law in the country." A public awareness campaign, named "GUNS=PRISON", featured posters calling attention to the 3 ½ year prison sentence given to anyone caught carrying an illegal loaded handgun in New York. At a press conference, Mayor Bloomberg stated, "Police Officer Russell Timoshenko was just the latest victim killed by a gunman firing at close range. If the prospect of three and a half years in jail deters just one would-be killer from carrying a gun and taking the life of another police officer in another deadly confrontation, then the law and the efforts to publicize it are well worth it."NFL player Plaxico Burress was charged with this new law due to an incident that occurred inside of a New York City nightclub. On August 20, 2009, Burress plead guilty to a gun possession charge and agreed to a two-year prison sentence.

External links

• Official Memorial Website for Detective Timoshenko

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