Widows of fallen NYPD officers praised Stephanie Diller’s eulogy for her slain husband on Saturday – where she called out politicians for inaction on policies to clamp down on crime.
Diller questioned how many more officers had to “make the ultimate sacrifice before we start protecting them” at funeral services for her husband, 31-year-old Jonathan Diller, who was gunned down during a traffic stop in Far Rockaway, Queens.
“My husband was killed by a repeat offender 26 years ago,” said Margaret Mosomillo, whose 36-year-old husband, Anthony, was shot to death in Brooklyn in 1998 while trying to collar a parolee who had missed a court date.
“She told the politicians that nothing has changed — and she is right,” she continued. “She made her point.”
Mosomillo also commended Stephanie Diller on her strength and poise as she spoke to mourners at the Long Island funeral.
“She was very composed,” Mosomillo said. “She told the world how Jonathan was more [than just] a cop. She did a fantastic job … I wish I would’ve been able to tell everyone how special Anthony was.”
Margaret Mosomillo Dan Herrick
Anthony and Margaret Mosomillo on their wedding day.
During her eulogy, Stephanie Diller mentioned NYPD cops Jason Rivera and Wilber Mora, who were ambushed and murdered by a career criminal in Harlem back in 2022.
“It’s been two years and two months since Detective Rivera and Detective Mora made the ultimate sacrifice — just like my husband Jonathan Diller,” she said at St. Rose of Lima Catholic Church in Massapequa. “Dominique Rivera stood before all the elected officials present today pleading for change.
“That change never came. And now my son will grow up without his father, and I will grow old without my husband. And his parents have to say goodbye to their child.
Stephanie Diller, wife of slain NYPD officer Jonathan Diller, holds their son, Ryan, during her husband’s funeral at St. Rose of Lima Roman Catholic Church on Saturday in Massapequa. James Keivom
Diller died last week after being shot in the stomach during a traffic stop in Queens.
“How many more police officers and how many more families have to make the ultimate sacrifice before we start protecting them?” she added.
Three-year department veteran Jonathan Diller was killed when he approached two men in a car parked at a bus stop — both career criminals with dozens of prior arrests, according to the NYPD and sources.
What to know about the fatal shooting of NYPD Officer Jonathan Diller:
- Diller, 31, was shot and killed during a routine traffic stop in Far Rockaway, Queens, on March 25, 2024.
- Suspect Guy Rivera allegedly opened fire on Diller on Monday evening after the cop approached the vehicle Rivera was in for parking in front of a bus stop.
- Diller was shot once in the stomach below his bulletproof vest. The married father of a 1-year-old boy was rushed to Jamaica Hospital, where he was later pronounced dead.
- Rivera was wounded when Diller’s partner returned fire. The suspect has 21 prior arrests and was found to have a shiv stored in his rectum during the shooting — in apparent anticipation of being sent to jail again.
- Lindy Jones, the ex-con behind the wheel of the car during the shooting, was also arrested after a second gun was found in his car.
- Mayor Eric Adams has renewed his calls for Albany to address criminal recidivism following the shooting involving two suspects with lengthy criminal records.
Follow The Post’s complete coverage of fallen NYPD Officer Diller’s wake
Passenger Guy Rivera, 34, shot the officer just below his bulletproof vest in an ensuing scuffle, cops and sources said.
Millie Alcamo, whose 31-year-old husband, Joseph, died in a 1992 car wreck while responding to an emergency call at a Queens housing project, said Stephanie Diller “spoke from the heart.”
Millie Alcamo, Joseph’s wife. Facebook/Millie Alcamo
Joseph Alcamo, an NYPD officer who died in a 1992 car wreck while responding to a call. Facebook/Millie Alcamo“She told everyone how wonderful Jonathan was, and how he was more than a cop,” Alcamo said.
“I also love how she mentioned police officers Rivera and Mora — and told the politicians that nothing has changed in over two years.”
What the strong-willed mom did was very difficult, fellow NYPD widows told The Post.
John D’Allara, who was killed at the World Trade Center on 9/11. Facebook/Carol D'Allara“I give Stephanie a lot of credit for standing up in front of all of those people, it’s not an easy thing to do,” said Carol D’Allara, whose husband, John, died on 9/11 when he strode into a collapsing tower to save those who remained.
“I’m very proud of her, it was a lovely tribute,” D’Allara told The Post. “She has been overwhelmed with everything that has happened in the last week, but her inner strength was only surpassed by her love for Jonathan. “
Kathy Vigiano, who also lost her husband, Joseph, on 9/11 as he and other members of the NYPD’s elite Emergency Service Unit tried to rescue those trapped in the World Trade Center, echoed D’Allara’s comments.
Kathy Vigiano with her husband, Joe, who died on 9/11.
“She really laid out how good of a man he was,” Vigiano said of Diller.
“She bravely and eloquently painted a picture that left every person who heard her wiping the tears away,” she told The Post. “They were robbed of a good life together by this senseless death.”
Patti Ann McDonald — whose detective husband, Stephen, died seven years ago after being paralyzed in a 1986 shooting in Central Park — said she was “very impressed” with Stephanie Diller.
The McDonald family — Conor McDonald (left), Steven McDonald and Patti Ann McDonald — with former housing bureau chief James Secreto back in 2016. David McGlynn for NY Post
Patti Ann McDonald with NYPD K-9 McDonald — which was named after her late husband, Steven. David McGlynn“She did an incredible job, and I was very proud of her,” McDonald said. “I was moved by her strength and her love for Jonathan. Everyone in the church saw that love.”
