ESU Cop Worried He "Disgraced His Family"

NYPD Emergency Services Unit Lieutenant Michael Pigott, who killed himself yesterday morning, left behind a suicide note noting his remorse and concern over his family. A police source told the Post, "He didn't want his family to see him cuffed up and jailed. The guy felt he disgraced his family."

Last week, Pigott ordered a sergeant to Taser an emotionally disturbed man, Iman Morales, who was standing naked on a storefront ledge in Brooklyn. Though ESU called for an airbag to catch Morales, it hadn't arrived yet and Morales fell on his head, dying at a hospital later.

The incident was caught on tape and the NYPD said it seemed the Tasering broke department guidelines and Pigott was stripped of his badge and gun. Earlier this week, Pigott had publicly apologized and the 21-year NYPD veteran had been receiving department counseling, apparently being told to take "a few days to rest up," according to a Daily News source. The source also said, "He was very distraught and upset what had happened...No one saw this coming. It is very tragic."

Pigott went to Floyd Bennett Field, where ESU is headquartered, and broke into another officer's locker to take a 9mm gun. In the note, Pigott said the Tasering was his fault and was apparently worried about criminal charges. The Post's source says that Pigott "placed photos of his wife and three children around himself and sat staring out the window at Jamaica Bay for some time before taking his own life."

Police Commissioner Kelly said, "On behalf of all the members of the New York City Police Department, I extend my deepest condolences to the family and friends of Lt. Michael W. Pigott, who served with dedication for 21 years," and Mayor Bloomberg also expressed his condolences, saying Pigott's death compounded the tragedy of Morales's death. NYPD and Sayville police officers were stationed outside Pigott's Sayville home, telling reporters to leave, but Pigott's father apparently raged at the NYPD, telling some cops, "My son loved his job. That's all he ever talked about. You people threw him to the wolves."

Yesterday was Morales's funeral. His aunt Ana Dejesus Negraon said, “This is not something we wanted anyone else to go through. This really disturbs the whole family." She said she believed Iman would want them to forgive Pigott and hoped Pigott's family "find[s] peace and healing and trust in life again."

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By Jen Chung in News on October 3, 2008 9:12 AM

Comments [rss]

jnguy

@dgandolfo

I wonder if you know that you come off as a douche bag. The cop felt so bad about what he did that he thought it was better to end his life. He didn't want to disgrace and shame his family, and put them through this entire ordeal. There are far worse cops out there.

resa

Wow, I don't care much for cops in general (I like some of them as individuals) but some of you people are sick to be happy about any part of this double tragedy.

jaycjay

"NYPD has been taking down bad guys and mentally unstable folks for years and years and years without the tazers."

ESU cops, in fact, have carried tasers since 1984.

The Edge

Ah, internet toughguys.

So fascinating.

The Man Bat

Just take away all the frickin tazers. NYPD has been taking down bad guys and mentally unstable folks for years and years and years without the tazers. Man up NYPD!!

jaycjay

"FWIW, *if* they had waited for the airbag, and he was tased and fell the same way, he would have broken his neck and died anyway"

And it still would have been a violation of Department policy, which says a taser shouldn't be used on someone in an elevated position. The reason to get the airbag in this situation was because the subject might have jumped or fallen, not because it would have made using a taser an option.

"NYPD and Sayville police officers were stationed outside"

There are no "Sayville police officers." That would likely have been Suffolk County PD.

kearnj

still...unspeakably terrible.

ANGRYGOD11

I count 2 funerals and a lot of devastated people

JacqueMehoff

you mean his Union didn't tell him that he'll get off with no jail time and just a slap on the wrist?

and he can transfer to the FDNY if he lost his job.

didn't his nypd brothers tell him anything?

I salute you Lt. Pigott, you did the right honorable thing.

drewo

It's very sad that Pigott's father is the only one speaking out. Meanwhile Kelly and Bloomberg spit up the usual cliched responses, before retreating to their weekend homes. The NYPD's preparation and procedures, or lack thereof, are to blame for the tragic and unnecessary deaths of two people.

The Man Bat

Just take away all the frickin tazers. NYPD has been taking down bad guys and mentally unstable folks for years and years and years without the tazers. Man up NYPD!!

schadenfreudian mensch

It was a tragic and stupid mistake. Lesson next time, wait for the airbag. Poking someone with a fluorescent light blub isn't a dire situation where you need to put a mentally disturbed man down.

mdow

count me as one who sees justice in this.

Papercutninja

"good riddance to bad cops"? A cop makes a mistake and some mentally imbalanced guy dies. That doesn't make him a "bad cop". It was a tragic mistake.

ironybubble

A lot can be learned from seeing this come full circle

dgandolfo

bleh. good riddance to bad cops. the less of them in the city, the better.

Spirit of 76

He was "very distraught and upset" yet "no one saw this coming"? Sounds like Pigott wasn't the only one who couldn't anticipate a problem. If fellow officers saw him that upset, they should have at least put him on an unofficial suicide watch.

You have to feel terrible for his family. Having a disgraced but living father and husband would still have been better than having none at all.

Felix Hoenikker

The city is worse off with one less experienced cop than with one less crazy person.

Yeah I said it.

FWIW, *if* they had waited for the airbag, and he was tased and fell the same way, he would have broken his neck and died anyway (or been a full quad).

ed_Extinct

A terrible tragedy...

plk779

Man.. sometimes people just make bad mistakes all around.

Jen Chung

This is terribly sad for both families. I hope the NYPD works on both its EDU training as well as its outreach to officers who need counseling.