Bio & Incident Details
Age: 32
Tour: Not available
Badge # 31668
Cause: Gunfire
Incident Date: 12/18/1977
Weapon: Officer's handgun
Suspect: Sentenced to 25 years to life
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Officer Ronald Stapleton died of wounds he received two weeks earlier when he was shot in the parking lot of a tavern at 2433 Knapp Street, Brooklyn, as he attempted to take action during a robbery while off duty.The two suspects attacked Officer Stapleton with a meat hook, gouged his eye out, and then shot him with his service revolver.
In 1998, a federal investigation into the activities of a New York Crime Family revealed the identities of the two suspects. One had died of AIDS in 1996. The other suspect was arrested by FBI agents at his home in Jackson, New Jersey.
On September 30, 1999, he was convicted of second degree murder and sentenced to 25 years to life. A year later he was charged with the murder of a man in Brooklyn in 1982. He was convicted of manslaughter and burglary and received an additional 5 to 15 years in prison.
Officer Stapleton was assigned to the 77th Precinct. He is survived by his wife and two children.
