Not sure officially why he didn't, but with four daughters, two of them in college and two in high school most of us can pretty much guess. Guys who are 47 with four kids don't retire.
Of course it doesn't really much matter now, but it's the kind of second-guessing that happens when a cop is killed in the line of duty.
Peter Figoski was just 47 and on one of those routine robbery calls the kind he's probably answered scores of times in his 22 year career.
None of us knows when the next call will be our last figuratively for most of us, literally for cops.
Tonight, the NYPD is mourning Officer Figoski. They're also looking for the killer's accomplice, who escaped when Figoski's partner heard the shot that hit the officer in the face. Figoski's partner chased the alleged shooter and caught him. It happened overnight in the Cypress Hills section of Brooklyn.
We're on top of this cop-killing story, looking at his life and the family he leaves behind, and keeping on top of the search for the second suspect. We'll have the latest, tonight at 11.
Also at 11, our N.J. Burkett is at Penn State tonight, with a preview of tomorrow's unusual and dramatic preliminary hearing involving former assistant football coach Jerry Sandusky. Tomorrow, some of the 10 alleged child sex abuse victims will be in court to testify against the man charged with molesting them.
We're also in New Jersey, where Mitt Romney is appearing with Gov. Chris Christie at a political event. Mr. Romney under a whole lot of criticism and second-guessing for his offer to bet $10,000 with Texas Gov. Rick Perry at Saturday's Republican candidates debate in Iowa.
If you watched, you probably cringed like I did when the bet came out of his mouth. Now he's trying to explain it and so is Gov. Christie. Today Christie said that Romney was "so sure" that Perry's view was wrong of the Massachusetts' health care bill under Romney- that he picked "a number that was so large" that it made a big point.
We'll see. And we'll have the latest from New Jersey. And we're taking a closer look at tablet this holiday season not the Ipad types but the ones marketed to children. That's right – kids' tablets. Consumer Reports has the 4-1-1 on them.
We'll also have any breaking news of the night, plus Meteorologist Lee Goldberg with his AccuWeather forecast, and Laura Behnke (in for Rob Powers) with the night's sports. I hope you can join Sade Baderinwa and me, tonight at 11.
And finally, thanks to all of you who sent messages after my knee surgery on Friday. I was overwhelmed by the level of support and by your good wishes. So I thank you. I'm on the mend and back at work. Thank you.
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