Det. Joseph A. Miccio survived seven battles during World War I, only to be grabbed by two perps, used as a human shield, and shot at approximately 1:55 p.m. on December 7, 1942, at Nevins Street near Dean Street in Brooklyn. He had been questioning the two subjects — both on parole from Dannemora — who suddenly opened fire when a second Officer approached. Miccio took two bullets in the chest and lung, then struggled to retain consciousness while the perps raced by car and foot through the streets in what the New York Times called, “one of the city’s most dramatic running pistol fights since the prohibition era.” Miccio collapsed on the street and died the next morning, December 8th, at Holy Family Hospital in Brooklyn.
Miccio had “an excellent record” during his 14 years with the NYPD, which he joined on February 28, 1928. He was the recipient of four Department citations for bravery and earned second grade as a Detective. He had been involved in the capture of gangster Vincent “Mad Dog” Coll in Harlem.
On June 16, 1943, Miccio’s killers — Joseph Palmer, age 28, and Vincent Sollami, age 26 — were sentenced to the electric chair at Sing Sing.
Miccio was assigned to Brooklyn’s Bergen Street stationhouse. He was survived by his widow Barbara and their three children: Barbara, age 11; Joseph, age seven; and Kenneth, age three. He was also survived by four brothers and five sisters. His family was honored at a promotion ceremony by Mayor Fiorello LaGuardia when he bestowed the Medal of Honor on Det. Miccio, the only Police Officer killed in the line of duty in 1942. A Police Athletic League Youth Center at 183 Union Street in the Red Hook area was dedicated in his honor.
In WWI, Miccio had served with the United States Army’s 106th Infantry. He had been taken prisoner at one point, and among his awards was the Belgian Croix de Guerre, signed by Albert, King of the Belgians, for “meritorious service.” It read, “During the operation of the regiment in Belgium, this soldier displayed great heroism and devotion to duty and on repeated occasions he undertook the performance of exceedingly dangerous tasks and carried them out successfully with an utter disregard of personal danger.” He also received the Distinguished Service Cross and the Order of the Purple Heart. Det. Miccio is interred at Holy Cross Cemetery in East Flatbush, Brooklyn.
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