How To Honor Fallen NYPD Officer As Procession Enters Westchester

WESTCHESTER, NY — Law enforcement organizations in Westchester are organizing an opportunity for the public to honor fallen NYPD officer Jason Rivera as his funeral procession makes its way to Ferncliff Cemetery for a private cremation ceremony on Friday.

The Westchester County Police Department and Yonkers Police Department are coordinating the "Hero's Salute" to honor Police Officer Jason Rivera's "service and ultimate sacrifice as he proceeds into Westchester County to his final place of rest."

The public is invited to watch the procession as it proceeds north on I-87 from the overpasses at:

• McLean Avenue
• Clark Street
• Yonkers Avenue
• Midland Avenue
• Palmer Road

An additional public support location will be in V.E. Macy Park on Saw Mill River Road in Ardsley.

Gathering time is 11 a.m. and the procession is estimated to pass through between 11:30 a.m. and noon.

Hall Plan and Clark Street overpasses will be closed throughout the morning. The Central Park Avenue northbound service road between McClean Avenue and Clark Street will also remain closed to emergency vehicles.

Drivers should plan to expect heavy congestion in the areas affected.

Rivera was shot and killed in Harlem on Friday. He was a 22-year-old with just over a year on the job, the NYPD said.

Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell described Rivera as a "son, husband, officer and friend," who was "killed because he did what we asked him to do."

Authorities say that Rivera and other officers arrived Friday evening at an apartment on West 135th Street near Lenox Avenue, responding to a fight between a mother and her son, identified as 47-year-old Lashawn McNeil.

SEE ALSO: Officer Killed In Harlem Is Identified As Jason Rivera, 22

As police walked down a narrow hallway inside the apartment, a bedroom door swung open and McNeil opened fire, hitting Rivera and fellow officer Wilbert Mora, according to NYPD Chief of Detectives James Essig.

Rivera was pronounced dead later Friday evening.

Mora, 27, remained in critical condition and died on Wednesday, NYPD officials said.

"Absolutely heartbreaking, beyond words," Yonkers Police Department officials wrote in a social media post hours after it was learned that Officer Rivera had been killed on duty. "Our thoughts and prayers are with the NYPD. When the hell is enough, enough..."

Patch's Nick Garber contributed to this report.