Crime & Safety

Gunman Who Shot NYPD Cop Sentenced

The man who shot Kevin Brennan, a Mepham graduate and NYPD Detective, receives up to 40 years to life in prison.

Written by Geoffrey Walter

A couple of weeks ago it had taken jurors less than three hours to find Luis Ortiz guilty of murder and of shooting of NYPD Officer Kevin Brennan, a graduate of Mepham High School, in the head. 

Now Ortiz will spend somewhere between 40 years and the rest of his life in prison after being sentenced on Tuesday afternoon in Brooklyn Supreme Court.

On Jan. 31, 2012, Brennan and two other officers in plain clothes had responded to calls of shots being fired at the Bushwich Houses public housing project in Brooklyn, encountering three men – one of whom was 21-year old Luis Ortiz – running from the scene. Brennan followed Ortiz into an apartment building but the other officers had difficulty getting a door open that had closed behind him and found Brennan on the hallway floor when they entered.

Brennan was released from the hospital several weeks after being shot and has since returned to duty. He recently received the NYPD Combat Cross.


Get more local news delivered straight to your inbox. Sign up for free Patch newsletters and alerts.

We’ve removed the ability to reply as we work to make improvements. Learn more here

To request removal of your name from an arrest report, submit these required items to arrestreports@patch.com.