Photo courtesy of the FDNY via Flickr
Fordham Heights resident, Jose Gonzalez, was found guilty by a jury on Wednesday, March 8, of the murder of FDNY Emergency Medical Technician, Yadira Arroyo, who he ran over with her ambulance nearly six years ago, according to the Office of the Bronx District Attorney. Darcel Clark, Bronx district attorney, announced the news the same day. As reported, after years of waiting, the family of the victim received news that Gonzalez was finally fit to stand trial on Sept. 21, 2022.
In the context of the conviction announcement, Clark said, “Jose Gonzalez was convicted today of first-degree murder in the horrendous death of Yadira Arroyo, a mother of five and 14-year veteran EMT, on March 16, 2017.” She added, “The road to justice for Yadi was tortuous; this case was delayed because of numerous hearings regarding the defendant’s fitness to stand trial, but her family and FDNY colleagues were patient and steadfast from the beginning until today’s verdict. I thank the witnesses, who saw Yadi in her final moments, for their testimonies during the trial. Yadi lives on in the legacy of her children, and in the countless New Yorkers she assisted in their time of need.”
Clark said the defendant, Jose Gonzalez, 31, last of 2388 Creston Avenue, was found guilty of first-degree murder. The verdict was reached after a nearly one-month-long jury trial before Bronx Supreme Court Justice Martin Marcus, according to the prosecution. Gonzalez is scheduled to be sentenced on April 5, 2023, the court heard. The trial against Gonzalez was delayed after multiple court hearings on the defendant’s mental fitness to stand trial, the prosecution team said, adding that he was deemed unfit in May 2022, and was sent to a psychiatric facility, only to be later deemed fit to stand trial in September 2022.
According to the investigation, on the evening of March 16, 2017 in the vicinity of Watson Avenue and White Plains Road in the Unionport section of The Bronx, Gonzalez grabbed on to the back of the victim’s ambulance and rode on it, then jumped off and stole a backpack from a young man. The robbery victim flagged down EMT Yadira Arroyo’s ambulance, and she got out of the vehicle and spoke briefly to Gonzalez.
The court heard that he then jumped into the driver’s seat of the ambulance, and Arroyo and her partner, who was in the passenger seat, told him to get out. Gonzalez put the car in reverse, striking Arroyo, then drove forward, pinning her under the vehicle and dragging her across the intersection. Gonzalez crashed the vehicle into a snowbank and exited the ambulance.
Prosecutors said an off-duty MTA police officer was nearby and saw Gonzalez drag the victim with the ambulance and confronted him. When Gonzalez tried to run away, the officer tackled him and handcuffed him, with the help of several civilians. Arroyo sustained multiple injuries and was taken to Jacobi Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead.
The case was prosecuted by George Suminski, homicide counsel in the Homicide Bureau, and Michael Schordine, deputy chief of Trial Bureau 60, under the supervision of Christine Scaccia, chief of the Homicide Bureau, and under the overall supervision of James Brennan, deputy chief of the Trial Division, and Theresa Gottlieb, chief of the Trial Division.
Clark thanked Assistant District Attorney Samuel Bruce of the Community Justice Bureau, Chief Appellate Attorney Peter Coddington and Assistant District Attorney John Komondorea, both of the Appeals Bureau, for their assistance in the case. She also thanked Bronx DA senior detective investigators, Yanireth Pascal and John Reilly, Bronx DA video technician, Andy Victor, and crime victim advocate, Eric Sawyers, clinical therapist, Evelyn Trinidad-Armenia, and former crime victim advocate, Priscilla Taveras, of the Crime Victims Assistance Bureau.
In addition, Clark thanked the 43rd Precinct detective squad, specifically NYPD Detective Robert Rentas, and NYPD Detective Christopher Skulsky from Bronx Homicide for their work in the investigation, as well as former MTA police officer, Daniel McDade.
Last year, on May 27, as reported, friends and family members of the late EMT were joined by community members and elected officials to officially rename Blackrock Playground in Unionport, in her honor. The park is located one block from where Arroyo was killed.
On June 14, 2018, then-fire commissioner, Daniel A. Nigro, and union representatives announced that all FDNY ambulances would have signs prominently displayed in multiple locations promoting strong penalties for assaults against EMS personnel. The first ambulances to receive the new signs were assigned to Station 26 in The Bronx, where Arroyo was killed.
“These new images on our ambulances are visible reminders to all that FDNY EMTs and Paramedics perform dangerous, life-saving work every single day; and anyone who interferes with that work by assaulting our members faces a severe punishment,” said Nigro at the time. “The men and women of EMS work incredibly hard to care for all New Yorkers; they deserve our protection and respect.”
Photo courtesy of the FDNY
The text on the signs reads as follows: “FDNY EMTs and Paramedics Are Protected by NEW YORK STATE LAW. Assault is a Felony Punishable by 7 years in prison.”
Oren Barzilay, president of Local 2507, Uniformed EMTs, Paramedics, and Fire Inspectors, said at the time, “The EMTs and Paramedics are out there to help the public in their time of crisis. Assaulting them while they perform their duties is unacceptable and will not be tolerated. They deserve to be protected by all means.” He added, “We’re thankful for the FDNY and Commissioner Nigro for taking a crucial step with protecting our members.”
His words were echoed by Vincent Variale, president of Local 3621, Uniformed EMS Officers Union, who said, “It is important that the general public be made aware that an assault on any uniformed Officer/EMT/Medic of the FDNY EMS command while in performance of their life saving duties will be punished to the fullest extent of the law.” Variale added, “We are thankful for the department in being proactive and responding to our members concerns in regards to their well-being and safety.”
Officials confirmed at the time that as of June 2018, there had been 87 instances of EMTs, Paramedics and EMS officers being attacked while on-duty. In 2017, 166 assaults were reported. Norwood News contacted the FDNY for an update on the latest figures in more recent years. The department provided the following breakdown:
Patient to FDNY Employee Workplace Violence Incidents
2018: 107
2019: 142
2020: 226
2021: 237
Member of the Public to FDNY Employee Workplace Violence Incidents
2018: 22
2019: 49
2020: 65
2021:126
The law strengthening penalties for assaults against EMS personnel was first introduced in 2015 by State Sen. Martin J. Golden, chair of the New York Senate civil service and pensions committee, and was signed into law by then Gov. Andrew Cuomo on November 20, 2015. The law took effect on February 18, 2016.
On May 23, 2022, during a ceremony at City Hall in Manhattan, New York City Mayor Eric Adams honored firefighters involved in the Sunset Park subway shooting in Brooklyn which took place in early 2022.
MAYOR ERIC ADAMS honors firefighters involved in a Sunset Park subway shooting in Brooklyn in 2022 during a ceremony at City Hall on May 23, 2022. Video courtesy of the Office of the Mayor of New York via YouTube.
Arroyo’s funeral took place on March 25, 2017, in The Bronx, after several days of public mourning and remembrance. In a statement on behalf of the Uniformed Firefighters Association (UFA), president, James Slevin, referred to Arroyo’s tragic death, saying at the time, “This week, we will lay to rest one of the City’s best. We continue to mourn the loss of Emergency Medical Technician, Yadira Arroyo, who was killed in the line of duty on the night of March 16th. Arroyo was appointed to the FDNY as an EMT in August of 2003, and was assigned to EMS Station 26 in The Bronx, where she served for 14 years.
He continued, “We lost a hero. She was a brave woman who was responding to a call for help, something she has dedicated her life to for the last 14 years. EMT Arroyo’s death is a tragic reminder that firefighters, EMTs and all first responders deal with dangerous situations every day.”
According to Slevin, Arroyo, who lived in The Bronx, was survived by her five sons, Jose Montes, 23; Edgar Montes, 22; Kenneth Robles, 19; Justin Robles, 16; and Isaiah Negron, 7; her parents, mother, Laida Acevedo-Rosado, and father, Luis Arroyo, Sr.; her siblings, Joell Arroyo and Luis Arroyo, Jr.; and numerous other relatives, including her stepfather, Efrain Rosado, and nine aunts and uncles.
Photo courtesy of NYC Parks / Malcolm Pinckney
On behalf of the UFA executive board and union membership, Slevin extended his condolences at the time to the members of Arroyo’s family, the members of the companies that she served with, and “brothers and sisters at the Uniformed, EMTs, Paramedics & Fire Inspectors F.D.N.Y. Local 2507.”
He concluded, “Her courage, commitment and sacrifice to service will never be forgotten.”
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Welcome to the Norwood News, a bi-weekly community newspaper that primarily serves the northwest Bronx communities of Norwood, Bedford Park, Fordham and University Heights. Through our Breaking Bronx blog, we focus on news and information for those neighborhoods, but aim to cover as much Bronx-related news as possible. Founded in 1988 by Mosholu Preservation Corporation, a not-for-profit affiliate of Montefiore Medical Center, the Norwood News began as a monthly and grew to a bi-weekly in 1994. In September 2003 the paper expanded to cover University Heights and now covers all the neighborhoods of Community District 7. The Norwood News exists to foster communication among citizens and organizations and to be a tool for neighborhood development efforts. The Norwood News runs the Bronx Youth Journalism Heard, a journalism training program for Bronx high school students. As you navigate this website, please let us know if you discover any glitches or if you have any suggestions. We’d love to hear from you. You can send e-mails to norwoodnews@norwoodnews.org or call us anytime (718) 324-4998.
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