One of New York City’s most notorious cop killers, the gangbanger who murdered Police Officer Edward Byrne as he sat in his patrol car in Queens in 1988, could become the 44th convicted cop killer released from prison in the last eight years when he appears before the parole board later this month, The Post has learned.
The ruthless assassination of the rookie cop by David McClary on the orders of a drug lord stunned a city in the throes of the crack epidemic in the 1980s — and became a national symbol of the era’s criminality.
On February 26, 1988, McClary and three accomplices ambushed Byrne, who was 22 years old and had only been on the force for a month. He was guarding the South Jamaica home of a witness who intended to testify against drug lord Howard “Pappy” Mason.
McClary sneaked up on Byrne while he was alone in a marked patrol car and shot him five times in the head.
Byrne’s murder sparked outrage, prompting then-President Ronald Reagan to call his family to express his condolences. President George H.W. Bush later brought the officer’s badge to the Oval Office, where he kept it on his desk.
Mason, 65, who ordered the cop’s murder from jail, was sentenced to life in prison on drug-related charges, including Byrne’s murder. According to records, he is currently being held at Devens Federal Prison in Ayers, Massachusetts. The three accomplices were all found guilty of murder.
Scott Cobb, the getaway driver, was paroled in 2023. Todd Scott and Phillip Copeland, the other two men, are still in prison — for the time being.
McClary, now 59 and in the Wende Correctional Facility near Buffalo, has served 36 years of a maximum-life sentence. He will appear for parole on an unknown date later this month, marking his eighth hearing so far.
The Byrne family, speaking out for the first time in decades, is outraged that he is even permitted to sniff freedom.
“This was someone who was clearly the most culpable and dangerous out of the group, but to this day he still denies any knowledge of what was going to happen that night — even though it was very clear that they all sat around the table and planned this and drew straws on who was going to execute my brother,” The Post’s Kenneth Byrne said.
“This was an absolutely shocking crime, executing a uniformed police officer in a marked car protecting a witness who was being tortured by this drug gang,” said Byrne, 56, a lawyer. The witness’ home was also firebombed.
“He should not be released. “I do not care what alleged accomplishments he has in prison,” said Byrne, who is preparing a victim impact statement to send to the parole board.
Former Governor Andrew Cuomo appointed 12 of the state’s current 16 parole board members.
Since 2017, when Cuomo changed the way the board decides whether to grant parole, 43 cop killers have been released.
The new guidelines, which were supported by liberal activists, require the board to consider an inmate’s “progress” behind bars, as well as their risk to society, with such factors outweighing the severity of the original crime, according to The Post. The board also takes into account age, with many paroled inmates being 60 or older.
“Andrew Cuomo stacked the parole board with radicals and changed the rules to favor criminals over cops—and now 43 cop killers have walked free because of it,” Republican mayoral candidate Curtis Sliwa said. “No one who murders a police officer should ever see the light of day again.”
Cuomo’s spokesperson declined to respond to criticism, stating that all of his appointments to the “independent board … were confirmed by the state Senate under both Republican and Democratic control.”
Mayor Adams’ spokesman, Todd Shapiro, stated that “as a former NYPD officer who has personally experienced the profound loss of colleagues in the line of duty… Adams urges the parole board to deny David McClary’s release.”
“We must uphold the principle that the murder of a police officer is an intolerable crime that deserves the full measure of justice. Our dedication to the safety and respect of our law enforcement community requires unwavering support and assurance that such sacrifices will not be forgotten.”
Byrne’s brother claims he receives transcripts of the cop-killer’s parole hearings.
“Since the standard for parole changed under Gov. Cuomo, I have read I do not know how many transcripts . . . because I get a copy of what each defendant says before I submit my statement, and they all focus on the progress they have made in jail, whether it is programs or classes or maybe they did not get in a fight,” he reported.
“And it completely ignores the fact that my brother never had the opportunity to develop his life. He intended to get engaged, marry, and start a family, but he never got to that point, so his development came to an end.
Byrne added angrily, “That is great they are finishing programs, but it completely ignores any victim of homicide, how their future was taken away from them, and the impact it has on their families, lives, and futures.”
“Quite frankly, I believe the system is upside down.
“I mean, you have a legislature sitting in Albany who are aware of this, have the ability to pass legislation and change it, and to this day . . . no one has done anything and they are just accelerating releases of dangerous people, especially cop killers,” said the lawmaker.
The night Eddie Byrne left for his final shift on Feb. 26, 1988, his retired police officer father told him the same thing he always told him: “Have a safe tour,” his brother said.
That was the last time his family saw the young cop.
“The next morning, I am answering a door at 5 a.m., and there is a police chaplain standing there, and you know that is bad news,” said Byrne, who lived in North Massapequa at the time. “I watched my parents collapse and then go to trial on a daily basis for months. They were simply drained and devastated.”
Byrne has lost both his father and his brother, Larry Byrne, who was the NYPD’s top lawyer until his death in 2020. His mother, Ann, is 88 and resides in an assisted living facility.
“She is got pictures of Eddie all over the apartment,” Byrne said, pointing to a shelf with one of her favorite photos of Eddie, smiling and uniformed, standing next to their Christmas tree shortly before he was killed.
“I am hoping I am not sitting down having another conversation with her before it hits the news telling her that the man who put five bullets in her son’s head is getting out of jail,” he joked, “because I do not know if she would survive this one.”
Police Benevolent Association President Patrick Hendry has asked New Yorkers to visit the union’s website and sign a petition “to keep this cop killer behind bars.”
“After Eddie was assassinated, cops and New Yorkers banded together to send a message that vicious drug dealers do not rule our streets,” he told reporters. “We cannot let the parole board erase that message.”