May 19, 2007 10:45 am US/Eastern
Family Marks Sean Bell's Birthday With Celebration
Sharpton, Lt. Gov. Paterson Show Up At Manhattan Party
QUEENS (CBS/AP) ―
Friends and relatives of Sean Bell, the groom killed in a barrage of police bullets on his wedding day, celebrated what would have been his 24th birthday Friday night.
Bell's fiancee, Nicole Paultre Bell, his parents, the Rev. Al Sharpton, Lt. Gov. David Paterson and others gathered at a Manhattan restaurant for the bittersweet birthday party. Also attending was Joseph Guzman, one of Bell's two friends who was seriously wounded in the Nov. 25 shooting.
Bell was killed as he was driving away from his bachelor party at a Queens strip club. The officers, who were conducting an undercover vice operation at the club, have said they believed Bell and his friends were retrieving a gun from his car to settle a dispute
Two police detectives have been indicted on manslaughter charges in the case; a third has been charged with reckless endangerment for a bullet that struck a train station across the street.
The shooting has sparked an outpouring of criticism of the New York Police Department's use of deadly force, undercover tactics and treatment of minorities.
"The spotlight -- period -- is unexpected," Bell's fiancee, Nicole Paultre Bell, told the Daily News this week. "We were forced into this. But I'm going to be here until the end, until we get justice for Sean."
Guests celebrated with a cake decorated with a photo of Bell, Paultre Bell and the couple's two daughters. They left the gathering with pins engraved with Bell's name and his usual parting phrase.
"He didn't like to say bye-bye," said Paultre Bell, who legally took her fiance's name after his death. "He'd say, 'Don't say bye, say: See you later."'
(© 2007 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
