Chicago police on alert after 2 NYPD officers killed, FOP says

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Investigators say the gunman in the murders of two New York City police officers may have been motivated by the deaths of Michael Brown and Eric Garner.

Police departments in the Chicago area and around the country are urging their officers to be on the alert. In the wake of the execution-style killings in New York, the Chicago Fraternal Order of Police said officers are on high alert for copycat attacks.

"We have to be on the edge constantly. We don't know when the next attack is gonna come," FOP President Dean Angelo, Sr., said.

Tensions remain high across the country and the debate continues over who, if anyone, should be held accountable. The FOP blames anti-police rhetoric generated from recent grand jury decisions in Ferguson and New York.

"What happened in Brooklyn on Saturday was a travesty. We believe it was instigated by some rhetoric that was coming down from politicians, from the pulpit in some circumstances, from elected officials and we feel that there is a direct correlation to the circumstances that transpired in New York," Angelo said.

In New York, police commissioner Bill Bratton and Mayor Bill de Blasio paid respects on Monday to the families of slain officers Rafael Ramos and Wenjian Liu. Police say the ambush happened so quickly, the officers never saw their attacker coming. He's now identified as 28-year-old Ismaaiyl Brinsley.

"These families are now our families," de Blasio said.

Critics have gone as far as blaming de Blasio for the attack, claiming he wasn't supportive enough of police in the midst of national protests over the deaths of Eric Garner and Michael Brown.

In a statement, Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy said "regardless of what city we live in we must continue to come together, as law enforcement, as local leaders, and as residents, in a partnership for peace."

Officers turned their backs to the mayor as he arrived at the hospital the day of the shootings. On Monday, de Blasio again called for a pause in protests.

"Put aside protests, put aside demonstrations until these funerals have passed," de Blasio said.

That message did not resonate with protestors in Chicago, who held a die-in Monday evening in the Great Hall of Union Station.

The FOP said Chicago police officers and their families are worried about their safety and the rhetoric has to change.

"It's a sin to point an accusatory finger to the police on a daily basis. Unless you are ready to strap on a weapon and get in a car, hold your tongue. You have no idea what they do," Angelo said.

The FOP did not acknowledge any changes in protocol for Chicago police officers, but said that police would continue to do what they've done all along: watch out for one another.

The funeral for one of the police officers killed in New York will be held Saturday. Eyewitness News spoke to some Chicago police officers who said they plan to attend.