A NYC grand jury has failed to indict a police officer for the choke-hold killing of Eric Garner, in what the medical examiner called a “homicide.”
The grand jury has just returned a “no bill” – a refusal to indict – an NYPD officer in the choke-hold killing of Eric Garner. Garner was suspected of selling loose cigarettes, a crime in New York City, and police wrestled him to the ground while arresting him. Despite his repeated cries, “I can’t breathe,” the police officer used an illegal method, a choke hold, to bring him down and hold him on the ground.
The Staten Island grand jury has effectively cleared the officers of all potential charges, although other avenues of justice, including a possible civil rights lawsuit, remain.
Some responses and photos via Twitter:
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UPDATE I – 2:46 PM EST:
Here’s how the New York Times frames the decision:
A Staten Island grand jury has voted not to bring criminal charges against the white New York City police officer at the center of the Eric Garner case, a person briefed on the matter said Wednesday.
The decision was reached on Wednesday after months of testimony including from the officer, Daniel Pantaleo, who used a chokehold to restrain Mr. Garner, an unarmed black man who died after a confrontation. It came less than two weeks after a grand jury in Ferguson, Mo., declined to bring charges against a white officer who fatally shot an unarmed black teenager, Michael Brown.
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