Friday marked a somber anniversary in Philadelphia’s history.
Thirty years ago to the date, Philadelphia Police Officer Daniel Faulkner was killed in the line of duty.
In the early morning hours of Dec. 9, 1981 Mumia Abu-Jamal shot the officer near 13th and Locust Streets in Center City.
Faulkner died but the case against Abu-Jamal would live on far beyond his 1982 conviction for murder.
Three decades later, the controversy surrounding the killing continued to top headlines. Just this week Abu-Jamal was taken off death row -- resentenced to life in prison following a court order for new sentencing in his 1982 murder conviction.
Instead of taking the sentencing case to trial Philadelphia District Attorney Seth Williams withdrew the death penalty because “the survivors of Danny Faulkner have suffered enough.”
At 3:30 a.m. Friday, officers observed a moment of silence at the site of the killing at the moment Faulkner was struck down.
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Mumia supporters also planned events for Friday in hopes to free the convicted cop killer.
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