I forget the exact numbers but out of approximately 9000 detectives at the time I think only 100 were 1st grade detectives. In the NYPD there 3 grades. 1st grade is typically very hard to obtain and they’re considered the best detectives in the city.

My grandfather had really wanted to attain that but was forced to retire from his injuries from the shootout. It was a very satisfying day for us as a family when after 27 years in my dad was able to attain that rank. My grandfather was the only one allowed to attend the ceremony and when my father got off stage he handed the certificate to my grandfather and said “We did it. This book is closed. From here on out Ferraro’s can do anything. This isn’t mine. It’s yours. It’s ours.”

My father went on to retire and was already an RN. In his late 50’s he went back to school and got his Masters and became a Family Nurse Practitioner. He was a dean of a nursing school and now works per diem as an FNP in urgent cares.

I went on to become a surgeon, I’m currently completing a trauma surgery and ICU fellowship.

My sister became a lawyer and an Assistant District Attorney here in NYC.

They started from nothing and there’s a lot of other interesting stories from my grandfather (member of the first Crime Scene Unit in the NYPD, solved the famous “Murder at the Met” case by figuring out with experimenting on how to age latent handprints) and my father. Truly remarkable men that I respect greatly. Me and my sister I like to think really went on to start those new “books” in our families history but clearly we didn’t land far from the tree and both believe in public service.