Gordon ends the affair and confesses his actions to his wife Barbara. Sarah leaves Gotham City for New York City soon afterwards. Sarah returns in Batman #458 (January 1991), where it is explained that she had married a New York cop who was killed in drug bust. Gordon had long since divorced and the two begin a serious relationship, resulting in Gordon's proposing to her on a night when the police station is under attack by a trio of supervillains with electrical powers. The two get married in Batman: Legends of the Dark Knight Annual #2 (1992). When James Gordon is demoted by Mayor Armand Krol in Batman #519, Sarah is given the job in his stead. Gordon later resigns from the Gotham City Police Department in the same issue. She takes on Gordon's collaboration with Batman and Robin, but does not like the job. Later, Sarah is fired from the GCPD by Krol, who is now "a lame duck" after recently losing in the mayoral election against Marion Grange. Essen is replaced as Commissioner by Andrew Howe, a close friend of Armand Krol. Grange later re-instates James Gordon as Commissioner and also re-hires and promotes Sarah to serve as liaison between the GCPD and the mayor's office. Sarah is murdered by the Joker in Detective Comics #741, at the end of "No Man's Land" story arc. The Joker had kidnapped dozens of infants and was holding them in the basement of the police station. Sarah first reached to Joker's position. Although she has him at gunpoint, the Joker tosses an infant at her, and Sarah instinctively drops her weapon to catch the child, saving it from injury. The Joker then shoots her in the head after saying a cold "Merry Christmas"; he, for the first time in his criminal career, apparently finds no humor in her death, as he is shown frowning immediately afterwards. Batman and Gordon find the Joker with Sarah's body. Enraged, Gordon is tempted to kill him, but instead shoots him in the leg. The Joker is at first enraged by this act, screaming that he will never walk again, but then realizes the humor in it and begins to laugh hysterically because he had done the same thing to Gordon's daughter Barbara in The Killing Joke. Her stepdaughter Barbara attends her funeral, feeling regret to call her as Sarah rather than Mom. In the Post-Infinite