Off-Duty Sergeant Fatally Shoots Man Who Allegedly Stabbed Police Officer

An off-duty New York Police Department sergeant fatally shot a man who stabbed another officer after a disturbance in a Yonkers bar spilled out onto the street, police said.

After completing their 6 p.m. to 2 a.m. shift in the anti-crime unit of a Bronx precinct yesterday, three NYPD officers stopped at a popular Irish tavern, Rory Dolan's Bar and Restaurant at 890 McLean Ave. in Yonkers, for a drink.

The officers were seated at the bar when they overheard Peter Lee, 20, and two unidentified men making lewd comments to three female patrons, officials said. A bartender eventually cut off the men's alcohol supply, the authorities said. While in the bar, the men also made wisecracks at the members of the NYPD, who are said to have identified themselves as police officers.

The three men and the officers left the bar, with the bartender on their heels. Once outside, the confrontation escalated. One of the officers, who was not identified, and his supervisor, Sergeant Michael Ingram, restrained one suspect while police Officer John Baumeister tried to capture Lee.

Lee stabbed Officer Baumeister three to five times in the neck and torso, police said. Sergeant Ingram then fired twice at Lee, with gunshots hitting Lee in the neck and the back, police said. Lee tried to run from the scene, but collapsed nearby. When Yonkers police officers responded to the scene at 3:17 a.m., Lee, of Woodworth Avenue in Yonkers, was "in a lifeless condition," a Yonkers Police Department press release said. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Lee's criminal history in Yonkers includes convictions for attempted robbery and assault with intent to cause physical injury, Yonkers police said. In the latter case, Lee was initially charged with assault with intent to cause physical injury to a police officer.

Officer Baumeister was taken to Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx, and late yesterday afternoon hospital officials reported that he was in fair condition.

The officer and sergeant have been recognized numerous times for distinguished police duty: Officer Baumeister, 30, has received 32 medals in his seven years with the department, and

Sergeant Ingram, 41, has been decorated 28 times in his eight years on the job, officials said.

It was the year's first shooting involving a member of the NYPD and an assailant, New York City police officials said.

The Yonkers Police Department has taken the lead in the investigation. with assistance from the Westchester district attorney's office, a spokeswoman from the district attorney's office said. Upon completion of the Yonkers investigation, the NYPD plans to conduct its own investigation, officials said.