Flushing Man Guilty Of Attempted Murder For Shooting At Cops: DA

FLUSHING, QUEENS — A jury has convicted a Flushing resident of attempted murder for shooting at two plainclothes police officers while they patrolled a Jamaica housing complex.

A jury found Flushing resident Jamel Ethridge, 40, guilty of attempted murder and criminal weapon possession for shooting at two plainclothes housing cops at the Baisley Park Houses in Jamaica in 2016, prosecutors announced Friday. Ethridge faces up to 40 years in prison.

NYPD Lieutenant Melody Robinson and Police Officer Rafi Mashriqi were on a routine patrol of the Baisley Houses the night of Oct. 28, 2016, when they saw Ethridge point a gun at them, according to trial testimony. Ethridge ran into the building and shot at the cops with a handgun, then the cops shot him in the leg, according to the testimony. He threw the gun down a trash chute and ran away.

Experts testified that Ethridge's DNA and fingerprints were on a loaded gun that police found in the building's trash compactor, according to the trial testimony. They said a shell casing found at the scene of the shooting matched the weapon.

"These officers were doing their jobs and protecting the public when they spotted the defendant walking pass them and suddenly the defendant pointed a firearm in their direction and charged after the police, firing at them," Chief Assistant District Attorney John M. Ryan said in a statement. "His actions resulted in an exchange of gunfire that could have led to a tragic outcome."