by CHUCK BENNETT
Miracle cop Stuart Ingram will keep "shielding" the public from harm even after trading in his police baton for a firefighter's ax.
The fresh-faced 22-year-old - whose life was saved when his police shield shattered a knife thrust at his heart - was among 256 new "probie" firefighters who graduated from the Fire Academy yesterday.
On March 22, a drunken maniac in Howard Beach, Queens, tried to stab the rookie cop with a 10-inch kitchen knife. The blade struck squarely on the nickel-alloy badge pinned to his chest and instantly broke into five pieces.
"Thanks [to the badge manufacturer] for making it stronger than the knife," Ingram said after the incident. "I guess [the badge] will have a little sentimental value now."
Ingram said he expects to be assigned to a firehouse in Queens. He added that all the focus on him is unwarranted.
"There are plenty of other people that better deserve the attention, such as all the ones mentioned in today's ceremony that served in the war and served their country," he said.
he first class of 2007 included 19 U.S. military veterans.
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