ORANGE – Acting Governor Richard J. Codey issued the following statement today following the fatal shooting of Detective Keiran Shields, a five-year veteran of the Orange Police Department, who was gunned down last night while investigating reports of gunfire at a Taylor Street home.
“I want to offer my deepest sympathy to the family of Detective Shields. I personally knew the family, and I pray that they have the strength to get through this tragedy.
“The killing of Detective Shields illustrates a point we’ve seen made far too often, in Orange and throughout the State. When illegally obtained guns wind up in the hands of the bad guys, our brave men and women in blue are put in harm’s way. We need stricter laws on gun control, and a greater crackdown on the trafficking of illegal guns, to be able to reclaim our communities from the criminal element.
“The area where Detective Shields was gunned down on Monday night is a half block from where I was born, and in the City I spent the first 37 years of my life. Children used to be able to play ball in parking lots. Now, shootings and crime chase law-abiding citizens away from the streets.
“Orange has suffered too many shootings of police officers in the line of duty. This year alone, three officers were killed and two wounded by gunfire, simply for doing their duty to serve and protect the people of the City. The dangers of the job in Orange hang like a black cloud over the police department.
“The Shields family has lost a loving husband and father, and we cannot let this tragedy go unnoticed. May God bless the family as they go through the grieving process, and may God watch over all of our men and women who serve and protect as members of New Jersey’s law enforcement community.”