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Grand Jury Fails To Indict White NYPD Cop; Protesters Close Roads In NYC, Multiple Arrests - Live Feed
http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2014-12-03/ferguson-20-grand-jury-fails-indict-white-nypd-cop-chokehold-death-case
It would appear NYPD has blacked out all webcams on the Westside Highway...
Live NY1 Coverage:
The politicians and 'leaders' have weighed in
* * *
Poilice are preparing at Grand Central (430pm protest planned)
10:12 AM - 4 Dec 2014 Manhattan, NY, United States
And protests are growing more active
11:42 AM - 4 Dec 2014 Manhattan, NY, United States
xxxxxxxxxxx
And arrests made in St.Louis after courthouse barricades torn down...
* * *
Cuomo Statement
* * *
A
Staten Island grand jury has decided not to indict white NYPD officer
Daniel Panateleo,
according to NY1, who allegedly used a banned chokehold and killed
Eric Garner, a 400lb black man, who was stopped on suspicion of
selling loose cigarettes. Eric Garner's son has called for peace and
hopes there is no Ferguson-like response...
Eric Garner:
Daniel Panteleo:
The scene...
The decision...
A
New York City grand jury has decided not to indict the New York
Police Department officer accused of killing a Staten Island man by
putting him in an illegal chokehold. The NYPD is now preparing for
more protests stemming from the decision.
Early
Wednesday afternoon, CNN, the Wall Street Journal and the New York
Post all reported that a grand jury declined to indict the officer.
Although
the special grand jury declined to indict Daniel Pantaleo, the white
officer accused of strangling Garner, who was black, the police
department can still reprimand Pantaleo under a basic rule that
loosely states if an officer does anything to embarrass the
department, then they can be disciplined.
"It's
sad if they take that position," Ed
Mullins, president of the Sergeants Benevolent Association, told
Staten Island Live. "I'd
be surprised and a bit disappointed if he was used as a political
pawn to appease the community."
The
incident occurred on July 17, when
at least five New York Police Department officers took 43-year-old
Eric Garner, a Staten Island father of six, to the ground in an
attempted arrest on Staten Island. One put Garner in a chokehold that
caused Garner – who suffered from asthma – to lose consciousness
and reportedly go into cardiac arrest. He was declared dead at a
nearby hospital.
The
Staten Island District Attorney’s Office convened the grand jury in
September, but did not announced the list of potential charges
against Pantaleo. But
prosecutors outside the district told ABC News that the range could
have included second-degree manslaughter, criminally negligent
homicide, felony assault or reckless endangerment. Legal experts and
former prosecutors had said that, despite the medical examiner’s
ruling the death a homicide, murder charges were unlikely, the New
York Times reported.
Garner's
son...
“It’s
not going to be a Ferguson-like protest because I think everybody
knows my father wasn’t a violent man and they’re going to respect
his memory by remaining peaceful,” Snipes said. “It’s not going
to be like it was there.”
Let's
hope so...
Police
in New York City began preparing for potential protests before the
grand jury decision was announced.
"We,
as you might expect, are planning accordingly," New York Police
Commissioner Bill Bratton said at a news conference on Tuesday.
Bratton
did not reveal how many officers were placed out on the streets ahead
of the announcement, but
he said that officers have been told to walk a fine line between
allowing the protesters to express their anger while keeping public
order.
If
they engage in criminal activity, such as vandalism ? actual crime ?
they will be arrested, quite simply," he said. "But we have
the ability to have a level of tolerance ? breathing room, if you
will."
There
are at least two different demonstrations planned in lower Manhattan
Wednesday,
including appearances of Parents Against Police Brutality and
protesters who say they are taking a stand against "the
criminalization of our communities and militarization of the local
enforcement agencies," ABC News reported.
* * *
Background here:
Dozens arrested as NYC
protests Eric Garner decision
At least 30 people were arrested by the New York Police Department on Wednesday evening, as thousands of protesters flooded city streets after a grand jury declined to indict an officer for killing a Staten Island man via chokehold.
Following
the decision, demonstrations began popping up throughout the city.
Protesters disrupted traffic by blocking numerous streets –
including the West Side Highway – marching into Times Square, and
taking over the area near Rockefeller Center, where the annual
Christmas tree lighting ceremony was taking place. Streets and
sidewalks were blocked, with police telling people they could only
pass if they had passes to the ceremony.
Protestors gather in New York Grand
Central Station on December 3, 2014.(AFP Photo / Timothy A Clary)
Demonstrators
also poured into Grand Central Station by the hundreds, where they
staged a “die-in” and spread their bodies across the floor.
Numerous protesters told RT they wanted to “shut
down” the
city as a result of the decision, and traffic jams were subsequently
reported at Lincoln Tunnel and Robert F. Kennedy Bridge, as well as
other areas.
Approximately
30 people were arrested, according to NYPD Commissioner Bill Bratton,
though more have been reported since he spoke around 10 p.m. So far,
police have not reported any violent incidents or injuries.
While
the protests were not previously planned, momentum for them began
building soon after the grand jury’s decision was reported. The
case involved 43-year-old African American Eric Garner of Staten
Island, who was placed in a chokehold by Officer Daniel Pantaleo for
allegedly selling untaxed cigarettes. Garner was taken to the ground
with the help of several others. Despite repeatedly complaining that
he couldn’t breathe, Garner ended up going into cardiac arrest and
dying.
People take part in a protest against
the grand jury decision on the death of Eric Garner in midtown
Manhattan in New York December 3, 2014.(Reuters / Eric Thayer)
The
July incident was caught on video by a civilian bystander and ruled a
homicide by the city medical examiner, but the grand jury did
not indict Pantaleo
on any charges.
The
decision was met with fierce criticism immediately after it was
revealed, drawing condemnation from all over the political spectrum.
New York Mayor Bill de Blasio said it was “a
very emotional day for our city,” adding
that Garner was “a
man who should be with us, and now in’t.”
Soon
afterwards, Attorney General Eric Holder announced the
Justice Department is opening a federal civil rights investigation
into the incident, one that would include a “complete
review” of
the evidence collected during the local investigation.
However,
this news didn’t quell outrage among residents, many of whom also
protested last week’s decision by a St. Louis County grand jury not
to indict a white officer for killing a black teenager. People
marched through the streets chanting slogans such as “I
can’t breathe,” referring
to Garner’s last words. They also yelled, “No
Justice, no peace.”
Following
the decision, Pantaleo issued an apology for what occurred back
in July.
"It
is never my intention to hurt anyone and I feel very bad about the
death of Mr. Garner," Pantaleo
said."My
family and I include him and his family in our prayers and I hope
they will accept my personal condolences for their loss."
However,
this news didn’t quell outrage among residents, many of whom also
protested last week’s decision by a St. Louis County grand jury not
to indict a white officer for killing a black teenager. People
marched through the streets chanting slogans such as “I
can’t breathe,” referring
to Garner’s last words. They also yelled, “No
Justice, no eace.”
Following
the decision, Pantaleo issued an apology for what occurred back
in July
"It
is never my intention to hurt anyone and I feel very bad about the
death of Mr. Garner," Pantaleo
said."My
family and I include him and his family in our prayers and I hope
they will accept my personal condolences for their loss."
Protesters against the Staten Island
grand jury's decision not to indict Daniel Pantaleo, the NYPD
officer involved in Eric Garner's chokehold death, walk together
December 3, 2014 in New York.(AFP Photo / Yana Paskova)
Speaking
alongside Rev. Al Sharpton, Garner’s widow, Esaw Garner, said she
did not accept Pantaleo's apology.
"I
couldn't care less about his condolences," she
said. "He's
still working, he's still feeding his kids. And my husband is six
feet under and I’m looking for a way to feed my kids now. Who’s
going to play Santa Claus for my grandkids this year? Who’s going
to do that now?"
"I
am determined to get justice for my husband because he shouldn't have
been killed in that way,” said
Esaw Garner.“My
husband’s death will not be in vain. As long as I have breathe in
my body I will fight the fight.”
Meanwhile,
Sharpton announced that there will be a march against police
brutality in Washington, DC, on December 13.
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