Police Memorial July 21, 2009

In 1939, Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia created the Police Memorial Fund Committee to finance the creation of a police memorial. The memorial was the City's way of recognizing the New York City Police Officers for years of selfless service to its citizens. Attilio Piccirilli, an Italian born sculptor, was commissioned in late 1939 to design the Memorial. Patrolman Martin J. Gillen, 20th Precinct, was chosen as the model for the Policeman and Eric LaGuardia, the nine year old son of the Mayor, for the boy.