This makes me sick. This is "politics" at its worst. Here's some information about the "honoree" that you may not know:
Bell had been arrested three times, twice for drug dealing and once for a firearms possession. In all cases, he was released on his own recognizance. The New York Daily News reported that, according to unnamed law enforcement sources, Bell sold crack cocaine twice to a confidential police informant in August 2006.
The two men who were injured by the police, Joseph Guzman and Trent Benefield, had been arrested nine and three times, respectively, each having been arrested at least once for illegal firearm possession. Guzman had been previously arrested for armed robbery, spending two separate terms in a state prison. Benefield had a sealed record as a juvenile for gun possession and robbery.
On April 25, 2008, all three of the police officers indicted were acquitted on all counts.
Bell was a bum who the police rightly thought was a threat to them that night.