Byrne, who was 22 years old, was sitting in a marked police car outside a witness's home in Queens when he was killed in the early morning of February 26, 1988. He had been a police officer for a relatively short time. The case attracted widespread attention and media publicity. Ten thousand police officers attended the funeral. Byrne became the symbol of the cost of drugs to society. The narrative details the detective work involved in investigating the case, describes the courtroom proceedings, and depicts the backgrounds and interchanges of the main people involved in the case. It also examines the ways in which crack trafficking and use have affected individuals and communities in recent years.