The trial of an ex-con who allegedly shot and killed hero Police Officer Jonathan Diller two years ago is expected to begin Tuesday in Queens, where he will come face to face with the murdered cop’s widow, who’s now a single mom of a 3-year-old.
The accused killer, Guy Rivera, 35, will be stared down by a phalanx of police officers expected to flood the courtroom.
“This trial is going to be incredibly painful,” PBA President Patrick Hendry, who plans to attend, told The Post.
“This evil individual not only took the life of a good cop, he robbed this hero family of a great father, husband and son,” Hendry said.
“Almost two years later, they’re still waiting for Jonathan to walk through their front door,” Hendry said. “His killer must not step foot [outside] a prison door for the rest of his life.”
Diller was 31 when he was slainwhile investigating a suspicious car parked in Far Rockaway on March 25, 2024.
He was walking up to the passenger side of a Kia Soul illegally parked outside a cell-phone store when Rivera allegedly fired three rounds from inside the vehicle, blasting Diller in his stomach.
Police believe Rivera and a cohort were planning to rob the store, officials have said. Rivera was shot once in the back by Diller’s partner.
Rivera had 21 prior arrests.
He now faces life in prison on charges of first- and second-degree murder and criminal possession of a weapon. He has pleaded not guilty to killing Diller.
Widow Stephanie Diller still grieves.
“I miss John every day and his trial is coming up and I wish he was here especially as Ryan grows,” she told The Post last month, referring to their son.
“There are so many moments that you have that you’re like, ‘Oh, he would have loved that,’” according to the Massapequa Park mom. “’I wish he was here to see.’”
Ryan has started talking, the mom said.
“His personality really shines through,” she said. “He has opinions. He’s strong willed, he’s kind, he’s funny. He has his own mind and I wish John had really been able to know him to see that.”
The widow said she has been surrounded and supported by a strong-knit group of police and other first-responder widows and her family in blue, but she regrets that her son will never know his father.
“Ryan has a fierceness in him,” she said. “It’s a funny thing about him because John was the same way. They’re fierce and they’re strong willed, but they’re also very kind.”
The child reminds her of her husband “every time he looks at me,” she said.
“He has his father’s eyes,” she said.
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