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Flushing Man Gets 40 Years for Shooting at NYPD Housing Officers in 2016

Baisley Park Houses where the shooting took place (Google Maps)

Nov. 13, 2019 By Allie Griffin

A Flushing man was sentenced to 40 years in prison Wednesday for shooting at two plainclothes NYPD officers patrolling Jamaica’s Baisley Houses in 2016.

Jamel Ethridge, 40, was convicted of second-degree attempted murder and second-degree criminal possession of a weapon at a trial in March.

Ethridge shot at NYPD Lieutenant Melody Robinson and Police Officer Rafi Mashriqi on Oct. 28, 2016 while they were canvassing the Guy R. Boulevard housing complex around 9:30 p.m., according to the charges.

The officers, who were unharmed, fired back at Ethridge and a bullet struck his leg. Despite being wounded, Ethridge fled the scene and tossed the gun down a trash chute.

Police later recovered the weapon, a loaded 9 mm handgun, from inside the building’s trash compactor and found his fingerprint near the gun’s trigger, as well as his DNA on it, according to trial records.

“Police work is often a thankless and dangerous job,” Acting District Attorney John Ryan said. “These officers were protecting the building’s residents when they happened upon the defendant, who boldly pointed a pistol at them and fired a handgun. The defendant’s callous actions could have killed the two officers or any resident in the vicinity of the gunfire.”

Acting Queens Supreme Court Justice Deborah Stevens Modica sentenced Ethridge to 25 years in prison on the attempted murder conviction and 15 years for illegally possessing a weapon. She ordered those sentences to run consecutively and begin after Ethridge completes the seven years he is currently serving on a previous weapons conviction.

“The sentence meted out by the Court today is more than warranted given the nature of this senseless act of gun violence,” Ryan said.