Protest Again in New York over No Charge of Officer in Chokehold Death of Black American Man

A grand jury has seems to enraged the blacks with another shock by not indicting a white New York City police officer Wednesday in the videotaped chokehold death of an unarmed black man who had been stopped on suspicion of selling loose, untaxed cigarettes, a lawyer for the victim’s family said. (Watch Video below)

The decision in Staten Island not to indict Officer Daniel Pantaleo threatened to add to the tensions that have simmered in the city since the July 17 death of Eric Garner — a case that sparked outrage and drew comparisons to the fatal police shooting of 18-year-old Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri.

Jonathan Moore, an attorney for Garner’s family, said he was told of the grand jury’s decision.
“I am actually astonished based on the evidence of the video tape, and the medical examiner, that this grand jury at this time wouldn’t indict for anything, is really just astonishing,” Moore said.

The grand jury could have considered a range of charges, from murder to a lesser offense such as reckless endangerment.

A video shot by an onlooker and widely viewed on the Internet showed the 43-year-old Garner telling a group of police officers to leave him alone as they tried to arrest him.

 

Pantaleo responded by wrapping his arm around Garner’s neck in an apparent chokehold, which is banned under NYPD policy. The heavyset Garner, who had asthma, was heard repeatedly gasping, “I can’t breathe!” A second video surfaced that showed police and paramedics appearing to make no effort to revive Garner while he lay motionless on the ground. He later died at a hospital.

The medical examiner ruled Garner’s death a homicide and found that a chokehold contributed to it. A forensic pathologist hired by Garner’s family, Dr. Michael Baden, agreed with those findings, saying there was hemorrhaging on Garner’s neck indicative of neck compressions.

Police union officials and Pantaleo’s lawyer have argued that the officer used a takedown move taught by the police department, not a chokehold, because he was resisting arrest and that Garner’s poor health was the main reason he died.

Protesters have stormed the street over Eric Garic while officer not charged, took the the New York City streets Wednesday night, bringing traffic to a standstill. Hundreds of people chanting 'I can't breathe' or holding signs reading 'black lives matter' poured onto the city's West Side Highway where they brought traffic to a total halt Wednesday night.

Others across town had planned to disrupt the annual Rockefeller Center tree lighting ceremony-- where protesters and revelers alike thronged the busy Midtown streets--but police ensured the Garner supporters got nowhere near the world famous tree. A.