One Year Later: Remembering Slain NYPD Det. Miosotis Familia

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) - A memorial mass and street renaming ceremony were held today to honor Detective Miosotis Familia, the NYPD officer killed one year ago after being ambushed in a mobile command unit in the Bronx.

Familia, a mother of three, was assassinated on July 5, 2017, by a gunman who was later killed by police. She was sitting in an NYPD Truck when it happened. 

Police say she was killed for her uniform. She had served for 12 years in the 46th Precinct.

The new street sign in front of the 46th precinct stationhouse renamed in her honor was unveiled Thursday.

Mayor Bill de Blasio and first lady Chirlane McCray returned from their vacation to attend the ceremony. They say the sign is a symbol that NYPD says shows they will never forget Familias' service and sacrifice.

A private memorial service was also held Thursday morning at World Changers church on the Grand Concourse in the Bronx.

Last night police and Familia's children gathered for a candlelight vigil outside the 46th precinct stationhouse where their mom worked. Candles were lit to mark the time just after midnight Familia was murdered.

"It tore me apart very sad cause those kids didn't have a mom," said Joey Williams, a resident in Fordam. "They deserve the public support it proves that people care."

At the time of the shooting, NYPD Commissioner James O'Neill called Familia's slaying "a direct attack on police officers assigned to safeguard the people of New York City.

"Make no mistake: Officer Familia was murdered for her uniform and for the responsibility she embraced," O'Neill said in a statement. "And for the NYPD, regularly achieving lower crime figures means absolutely nothing when one of our own is brutally shot and killed."

Her daughter, 20-year-old Genesis Villella, put her college education on hold to fill her mother's shoes, raising her 12-year-old twin siblings, Delilah and Peter.

Thanks to donations last year, Familia's family was given a mortgage-free three-bedroom apartment in the Skyview Towers overlooking the Hudson River in Riverdale.

During a National Peace Officers' Memorial Service in Washington DC last May, President Donald Trump recognized Familia's family in attendance.

"I just want to say that, to your entire family, it's such an honor to have you up here," said Trump. "She loved the department. She loved being a police officer. She loved her job. She was respected by everybody."