An NYPD Emergency Service Unit officer with 15 years on the job was shot in the leg Friday morning during a lengthy standoff with an armed man barricaded inside a Brooklyn home, officials said.
Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch said the confrontation began around 5:45 a.m. when officers from the 79th Precinct were sent to a two-story Bedford-Stuyvesant residence after a 911 caller reported multiple gunshots inside.
The suspect, identified as 48-year-old Lamin Simmons, is accused of firing about 20 rounds over the course of the standoff, according to Tisch.
Tisch also said Simmons was taken to a hospital after police opened fire, where he was later pronounced dead.
Authorities said drone video appeared to show Simmons holding a handgun, and around 8:30 a.m. he began throwing heavy household items — including a microwave, a lamp, and pots and pans — from a window toward officers positioned in the backyard.
Simmons’ wife and son were able to get out of the home safely and told investigators he had a history of mental illness, Tisch said, while an elderly couple remained trapped on the floor above.
Police determined the incident initially stemmed from a dispute involving the couple.
At 8:52 a.m., ESU officers entered the home and encountered Simmons at the top of the stairs, Tisch said. He allegedly ignored multiple direct police orders to drop his gun and opened fire on the officers, striking detective Matthew Gale in the left leg.
At least four officers returned fire, striking Simmons, who was later taken to Woodhull Hospital and pronounced dead, police said.
FILE – The NYPD said the incident stemmed from an altercation with an elderly couple living in the same house. (Kyle Mazza/Anadolu via Getty Images)
Investigators recovered two weapons at the scene: a Jimenez Arms .380 caliber handgun and a Beretta handgun equipped with an extended magazine, Tisch said.
Simmons did not have prior documented history with the NYPD.
Gale suffered a tibial fracture but remains in stable condition and in “good spirits” at Kings County Hospital, where he is expected to survive, according to authorities. City Mayor Zohran Mamdani wished the wounded NYPD detective a quick recovery. (Leonardo Munoz/AFP)
Tisch praised the wounded detective and the ESU for consistently handling the city’s most volatile assignments, saying they “met that danger with uncommon valor.”
“What happened this morning is a reminder that the men and women of the NYPD routinely place themselves between danger and the people that they serve. They enter situations that are uncertain and volatile and often life-threatening,” Tisch said. “This morning, detective Gale put his life on the line doing exactly that.”
“We like to say that when the public needs help, they call the police, and when the police need help, they call ESU,” she continued. “Today, once again, they met that danger with uncommon valor.”
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani visited the hospital to thank the medical staff and commend Gale’s bravery, noting, “He put on his uniform, he left his house, he said goodbye to his family, and he went to his job to keep our city safe.”
“When New Yorkers call 911, they expect someone to show up,” Mamdani said. “What this officer, and so many others, [did] today was exactly that. I want to thank the first responders and the officers who acted so swiftly in the aftermath of this shooting, and I know that all New Yorkers will join me in wishing detective Gale a full and speedy recovery.”
