{"id":96112,"date":"2026-01-10T23:56:06","date_gmt":"2026-01-10T23:56:06","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/96112\/"},"modified":"2026-01-10T23:56:06","modified_gmt":"2026-01-10T23:56:06","slug":"exclusive-nyc-detective-steven-mcdonald-honored-on-9th-anniversary-of-death","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/96112\/","title":{"rendered":"Exclusive | NYC Detective Steven McDonald honored on 9th anniversary of death"},"content":{"rendered":"

Family and friends gathered to remember fallen NYPD Detective Steven McDonald on the 9th anniversary of his death<\/a> at St. Patrick\u2019s Cathedral in Manhattan on Saturday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

McDonald was a 29-year-old patrolman when he was shot three times on July 12, 1986, by a 15-year-old boy while he was questioning the teen about bicycle thefts in Central Park.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A memorial service for Detective Steven McDonald was held at the Lady\u2019s Chapel of St. Patrick\u2019s Cathedral Saturday. Luiz C. Ribeiro for New York Post<\/p>\n

Detective McDonald in his hospital bed after the shooting in 1986 with his wife next to him. New York Post<\/p>\n

One of the bullets shattered his spine, paralyzing him from the neck down <\/a>and leaving him in need of a ventilator for the rest of his life. He died 31 years later <\/a>on Jan. 10, 2017, from respiratory complications at age 59.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy father was a tremendous human being,\u201d his son, NYPD Captain Conor McDonald<\/a>, told The Post. \u201cHe faced evil and darkness and he overcame it through the power of prayer and love.\u201d<\/p>\n

McDonald was joined in the gathering in the iconic cathedral on Fifth Avenue by his wife and two children, his mother, Patricia McDonald, who was three months pregnant with him when his dad was shot, and dozens of NYPD members and officials, including Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch.<\/p>\n

\u201cAfter the shooting he was given three to five years to live,\u201d McDonald recalled. \u201cThe doctors didn\u2019t think he was going to be able to survive the injuries for that long. He believed the grace of God gave him the power to overcome his injuries.\u201d<\/p>\n

NYPD Captain Conor McDonald at his dad\u2019s memorial with his 1-year-old son Steven Mychal. Luiz C. Ribeiro for New York Post<\/p>\n

Detectives Endowment Association President Scott Munro talked about McDonald visiting precincts in his wheelchair to talk to other cops. Luiz C. Ribeiro for New York Post<\/p>\n

The teen who shot McDonald served nine years in prison. He was killed in a motorcycle crash four days after his release on parole.<\/p>\n

\u201cMy dad was just remarkable,\u201d the son recalled. \u201cHe could go from Chinatown to 125th Street to Middle Village and he could connect with anybody. He made it his mission to bridge the gap between all different communities. He just wanted to make NYC and the world a better place<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

One of the speakers at the event echoed that sentiment.<\/p>\n

Conor McDonald with a photo of his father at the church. Luiz C. Ribeiro for New York Post<\/p>\n

Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Hendry spoke about McDonald at the memorial service. Luiz C. Ribeiro for New York Post<\/p>\n

\u201cHe gave us hope,\u201d Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Hendry told the attendees. \u201cHe inspired us to always be grateful for what we have, to give back to others. He was truly one of a kind.\u201d<\/p>\n

Detectives Endowment Association President Scott Munro told the congregants how McDonald would visit precinct roll calls around the city in his wheelchair, \u201cspeaking directly with cops.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWhether you were a rookie or a seasoned detective he met you where you were \u2013 with humility, sincerity and respect,\u201d Munro said. \u201cThat\u2019s why his words stayed with you long after the conversation ended.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Family and friends gathered to remember fallen NYPD Detective Steven McDonald on the 9th anniversary of his death…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":96113,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[8],"tags":[4709,57,9,56,63,65,64,103,242,27742,58],"class_list":{"0":"post-96112","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-new-york-city","8":"tag-central-park","9":"tag-metro","10":"tag-new-york","11":"tag-ny","12":"tag-nyc","13":"tag-nyc-headlines","14":"tag-nyc-news","15":"tag-nypd","16":"tag-police-shootings","17":"tag-st-patricks-cathedral","18":"tag-us-news"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96112","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=96112"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/96112\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/96113"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=96112"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=96112"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=96112"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}