Fmr. Philadelphia police officer Mark Dial granted immediate parole after being sentenced in shooting death of Eddie Irizarry

PHILADELPHIA (WPVI) — Former Philadelphia police officer Mark Dial was sentenced Thursday in the 2023 shooting death of Eddie Irizarry. Irizarry’s family members expressed outrage after leaving the courtroom.

He was sentenced to 9.5 months to two years. He is being granted immediate parole after already serving 10 months.

“He was a cop, so he gets the okay. But that’s where they messed up, because now you’re telling everybody, ‘go ahead and get shot and the cop’s going to walk off.’ Because right now he’s walking out with his family – we need to go to a cemetery,” said Irizarry’s aunt, Zoraida Garcia.

At the heart of the case was whether Dial was justified in using deadly force when he fired six shots into a car driven by Eddie Irizarry in August 2023, killing him.

Police started following Irizarry after he drove erratically and eventually went the wrong way down East Willard Street.

After Irizarry stopped his car, he sat inside holding a knife.

The defense said the handle resembled a gun, and it looked as if he pointed it at officers. Dial testified he thought his partner yelled “gun.”

Throughout the trial, Irizarry’s family has been emotional, leaving the court at times as the bodycam video was shown of him being killed.

Dial is now a convicted felon and can never work as a police officer again.

This is a developing story and will be updated.