Bronx Corner Named For Miosotis Familia A Year After Slaying

THE BRONX, NY — Det. Miosotis Familia has been gone for a year, but her memory will live on outside the Bronx precinct where she worked. The intersection of Ryer Avenue and East 181st Street outside the 46th Precinct was renamed "Detective Miosotis Familia Way" on Thursday, the anniversary of the 12-year NYPD veteran's murder in the line of duty.

"She loved our family, but she also loved New Yorkers. She loved her city," Genesis Villella, Familia's oldest daughter, said in a tearful speech at a ceremony in her mom's honor.

Familia was shot in the head and killed early in the morning of July 5, 2017 while on duty with a partner in a mobile command unit near the corner of Morris Avenue and East 183rd Street. She was 48.

Police Commissioner James O'Neill called the shooting an "unprovoked direct attack on police officers." The alleged shooter, Alexander Bonds, was shot and killed by cops who found him near the scene.

Familia was remembered as a selfless, dedicated officer who gave her all to protect the city and improve the lives of her family. She left behind three children: Genesis Villella, Peter Vega and Delilah Vega.

Villella said her mom confronted bullies and befriended their victims when she was in high school. Familia was the first in her family to go to college and went on to become a nurse and join the NYPD.

"Miosotis was a public servant of love who fell victim to an act of hate," said City Councilman Ritchie Torres, who represents the area. "She was ambushed and assassinated not because of what she did but because of who she was, because of the blue uniform in which she served and loved our city."

The City Council passed legislation last month renaming the corner outside the 46th Precinct in Familia’s honor. She was also remembered at a Thursday morning memorial mass at World Changers Church, where her funeral service was reportedly held last year.

"We'll be back again and again to honor Miosotis's sacrifice, and we'll do everything we can to live up to the example she set for us," O'Neill said Thursday.

(Lead image: An intersection outside the Bronx police precinct where Miosotis Familia worked was renamed in her honor on Thursday. Photo from NYPD via Twitter)