Issue link: http://cp.revolio.com/i/1731
44 AMERICAN POLICE BEAT: MAY 2009 DiPonzio and his fam- ily say his fellow offi cers, friends and complete strang- ers have treated him like family. "It's almost like it's your own child coming through something like this," Italian American Law Enforce- m e n t O f f i c e r s President Sharon Rivaldo told the New York Post. During a recent fundraiser for Di- Ponzio, support- ers got a surprise: Anthony took a break from phys- ical rehabilitation to thank those that have come to his aid in person. Reporters asked why the recovering officer felt he needed to be there. "Because I'm just so thank- ful and touched by all the support I'm getting from the community. I just wanted to come and say thank you," he said. DiPonzio's spirit is a force of nature and may be driving the wounded offi cer's recovery. That pro- cess has been described by doctors as a miracle. "He still has his good sense of humor, his good personality," Rivaldo told the assembled press out- lets. "He still has his will to protect and serve and not even a bullet in the head has dampened that commit- ment and enthusiasm." "Absolutely I'll be better. My main concern is getting healthy and getting back to work," DiPonzio said. "He has the will to get better. He wants to come back to work. I'm going to stand next to him at roll call when he does come back to work," Rochester Police Officer Paul Dondorfer proudly told reporters. To help Anthony and his family pay for costs as- sociated with medical bills and travel expenses, the Rochester Police Union and community members and groups have raised thousands of dollars. But the battle is far from over. Despite DiPonzio's prog- ress, Mike Mazzeo, the pres- ident of the Locust Club (the Rochester police union) said more needs to be done. "A lot of rehab is still going on. There will be some remodeling done w i t h t h e h o m e . There are a lot of expenses outside just the medical ex- penses," Mazzeo said. New York Governor Da- vid Paterson recently de- scribed the offi cer's heroic fi ght to get back to work as a miracle. But DiPonzio says he's not special and as far as the real miracle, he had nothing to do with it. "I think the miracle hap- pened when the doctors and the people that I work with did what they did to take care of me," DiPonzio said. The 15-year-old accused of shooting DiPonzio in the back of the head is sched- uled to go to trial in Au- gust. Tyquan Rivera was 14 years old January 31st when investigators said he shot DiPonzio with a rifl e as the offi cer investigated a report of drug activity on Roches- ter's Dayton Street. Rivera faces attempted murder and assault charges. He's being held without bail. If you would like to con- tribute to the fund to help Officer DiPonzio, make your check out to the An- thony DiPonzio Fund. Send it to: Rochester Police Locust Club, 1425 Lexington Ave., Rochester, NY 14606. Tel: 585-254-5410. Continued from page one Cop recovering from gunshot wows docs, thanks supporters He still has his will to protect and serve and not even a bullet in the head has dampened that commitment and enthusiasm. Rochester, New York Police Offi cer Anthony DiPonzio Offi cials in McKeesport, Pennsylvania are auditing police overtime records after seven officers were suspended for submitting bogus overtime claims for hours they never worked and court appearances they never made. Mayor James Brewster says the audit will deter- mine whether the prob- lem was limited to the sus- pended officers or if the investigation needs to be broadened. The Allegheny County District Attorney's Offi ce will review records for cases involving McKeesport of- fi cers to see who appeared in court for those cases. McKeesport has 58 of- fi cers serving 22,000 resi- dents about 10 miles south- east of Pittsburgh. Overtime to be audited "Hey, I don't think those guys were really police!" Police investigating a robbery in Cleveland say two vice offi cers at the scene assured them everything was under control. One police offi cer grew suspicious when he went inside to say hello to the officers, who said they worked in his former police district. The two men left quickly and the robbery victims told the real offi cer the men had masqueraded as vice offi cers during the holdup. The good news is that Cleveland police arrested one potential suspect, a 36- year-old man with some of the victims' items, shortly after the incident. Circle number 111 on the Reader Service Card. N.Y. IRONWORKS . IRONWORKS N.Y. IRONWORKS N.Y SERVING THOSE WHO PROTECT AND SERVE FOR OVER TEN YEARS FREE PEPPER SPRAY Active law officers will receive a free bottle of Special 7% New York Formula Pepper Spray. Contact us at or visit online at for full details on this free offer. Specializing in supplies and equipment for police officers nationwide. 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