NYPD Det. Steven McDonald's life and legacy honored 5 years after his death 

Five years since his death, family, friends and colleagues of NYPD Det. Steven McDonald said Tuesday that his legacy remains — protecting cops and bridging New York City's racial and civic divisions.

Mayor Eric Adams and Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell were among those gathered at Manhattan's St. Patrick’s Cathedral to remember McDonald at a Mass offered by Cardinal Timothy Dolan.

McDonald died Jan. 10, 2017, after a heart attack. He was 59. Police ruled it a line-of-duty death stemming from the July 12, 1986, shooting by a 15-year-old boy in Central Park that left the cop paralyzed and in a wheelchair.

His son, NYPD Lt. Conor McDonald, recalled kneeling at his father's bedside five years ago to say the rosary before NYPD roll call. He said it still doesn’t feel like his dad is gone.

"My father has never left. He has been by our side and he will always be with us," McDonald said. "Let us remember my father’s message where hate and resentment has divided our city and our country. Even in the darkest time, love conquers all."

Rather than let the shooting that took so much define him, Steven McDonald forgave Shavod Jones, the teenager who shot him. Patti McDonald, his wife and the former mayor of Malverne, read her husband's statement of forgiveness outside Bellevue Hospital where he was being treated after the shooting.

McDonald counseled and prayed with Jones while he served nine years in prison, said the detective's longtime friend, Peter James Johnson. McDonald even considered one day letting Jones stay at his home but the ex-convict was killed in a motorcycle crash shortly after his release from prison, Johnson said.

"Each day was a herculean struggle and a fresh opportunity," Johnson said of McDonald. "He understood before many that blue lives and Black lives were not only bound together, but they were indistinguishable and equally sacred and the simple bonds that unite us could be revealed with simple dialogue."

Sewell said McDonald was a hero and an inspiration to police and others, but those labels don't fully capture his legacy.

"When he saw violence and pain, he preached peace. When he endured great suffering and pain, he offered healing and hope," Sewell said. "He had every reason to be angry and bitter to the person who needlessly changed the course of his life in a tragic instance, but he said 'I forgive him.' "

"We can endeavor to be more like him," the police commissioner said. "The path of love and respect he laid out for us, is right there to follow."

Adams said he was a rookie cop when McDonald was shot amid increasing city violence during the crack epidemic of the 1980s. McDonald recovered with his family’s support and devoid of bitterness, the mayor said.

"To the officers here: When you put on the blue uniform and vest to protect children and families of this city, every day you start that tour your family is performing that tour with you," Adams said. "It takes a special person to look over the pain and realize that bullet could have produce the end of Steven’s life. But it was only the beginning. He did not let allow pain to turn into despair, he turned it into a purpose."

By John Asbury

john.asbury@newsday.comJohnAsbury

John Asbury is a breaking news and general assignment reporter. He has been with Newsday since 2014 and previously worked at The Press-Enterprise in Riverside, California.