Cops Strangle to Death 350 Pound, 31 Time Arrested, Asthmatic Father of 6 Selling Illegal Cigarettes

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**WarOne**

And it was all caught on video, which seems to be all over the place so you can watch the man's last minutes from anywhere, anytime.

All over illegal cigarettes. Shouldn't that warrant a citation/ticket instead?

http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/nyc-crime/staten-island-da-man-death-nypd-chokehold-article-1.1871946

http://online.wsj.com/articles/prosecutors-investigating-death-in-nypd-custody-1405709867

Prosecutors are investigating the death of a Staten Island man who complained he couldn't breathe as a New York Police Department officer subdued him with a chokehold, a tactic that the police commissioner called an apparent violation of policy.

Eric Garner, 46 years old, died about an hour after the altercation with officers, which a witness video-recorded with his cellphone.

Mr. Garner can be heard on the two-minute video repeatedly saying, "I can't breathe," as one officer administered the chokehold and brought him to the ground with several others.

The video surfaced on the New York Daily News website late Thursday evening, drawing criticism from elected officials and civil rights advocates.
Enlarge Image

Mayor Bill de Blasio and Police Commissioner Bratton at a news conference on the death of Eric Garner on Friday. John Taggart for The Wall Street
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Police Commissioner William Bratton and Mayor Bill de Blasio called a news conference to address those concerns, promising a thorough investigation.

"Like so many New Yorkers I was very troubled by the video I reviewed earlier today," Mr. de Blasio said. Shortly after the news conference, the mayor's spokesman said Mr. de Blasio delayed departing for his family vacation to Italy by a day so he could address the incident.

Mr. Bratton reviewed the video and said, "as defined in the department's patrol guide, this would appear to have been a chokehold." The NYPD outlawed the tactic in 1993.

"Chokeholds are in fact prohibited by the New York City police department as they are by most police departments in the U.S., because of the concerns of the potential death arising from them," Mr. Bratton said.

It is up to the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner to determine a cause of death. A spokeswoman said an autopsy was conducted Friday afternoon but further study was needed.

Mr. Garner's sister, Lisha Flagg, said he suffered from severe asthma and used an inhaler. "To hear him gasping for air, knowing his condition, it was very heartbreaking," she said. "I wanted to help him."

"My concern is what's going to happen to those officers. We want complete, official justice," Ms. Flagg said.

The Office of Staten Island District Attorney Daniel Donovan will determine if the actions were criminal. The NYPD's Internal Affairs Bureau will determine if the officer's actions violated department policy.

Mr. Donovan said he is working with the NYPD to do a "complete and thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding Mr. Garner's death."

Police declined to release the names of the officers involved in the incident. One officer has been on the force for four years, the other eight years. Both have been placed on modified desk duty until the investigation is complete, Mr. Bratton said.

Mr. de Blasio, who campaigned on a promise to bridge the gap between the police and minority communities, called for calm and patience as authorities investigated.

"Now more than ever we must come together as New Yorkers as we search for answers, come to terms with this tragedy," he said.

Mr. Garner was stopped around 4:50 p.m. Thursday by two plain clothes anticrime officers. Police said the officers saw him in a high-crime area selling untaxed, individual cigarettes.

A law-enforcement official said Mr. Garner has a criminal record that includes more than 30 arrests dating back to 1980 on charges such as assault, resisting arrest, grand larceny. The official said the charges include multiple incidents in which he was arrested for selling unlicensed cigarettes.

The officers were under orders from a supervisor to address conditions in nearby Tompkinsville Park, where the NYPD has received "numerous" complaints from residents and merchants, Mr. Bratton said.

Year to date, the police have made 98 arrests in the park and received nearly 650 calls to 911, Mr. Bratton said.

In a video, Mr. Garner is seen having a verbal argument with the plainclothes officers. "I didn't do anything. I didn't sell anything," he is heard saying.

One of the officers tells Mr. Garner, "I watched you" sell the cigarettes.

The incident escalates when Mr. Garner tells an officer who is reaching for his hands, "Don't touch me."

A second officer puts a chokehold on Mr. Garner. The officer applied it for about 12 seconds as he struggled to bring Mr. Garner to the ground and while he is on the ground, the video shows.

At some point, the officers called for backup. Three more officers arrived.

Mr. Garner can be heard repeatedly telling the officers: "I can't breathe" after the officer removed the chokehold. One officer held Mr. Garner's head against the ground as another officer placed Mr. Garner's hands behind his back to handcuff him.

At one point, officers can be seen gently shaking Mr. Garner. As the video ends, Mr. Garner is motionless on the sidewalk.

The NYPD has addressed the issue of officers placing chokeholds on people since the 1980s. The policy has been refined several times, including in 2013, Mr. Bratton said.

Mr. Bratton said he didn't think the use of chokeholds was a systematic problem, and said it was the first incident he was aware of during his seven months in office.

Mr. Bratton said he instructed the deputy commissioner for training Benjamin Tucker to review the video and policies, and to determine if officers need to be reminded of the policy and retrained.

The Rev. Al Sharpton said he would hold a rally Saturday on Staten Island and will address the incident in his weekly Saturday message at the National Action Network.

City Council Speaker Melissa Mark-Viverito said the NYPD "must have a full, transparent and thorough investigation into the incident."

"New Yorkers expect and deserve to be safe and those protections must include those who are in the custody of NYPD," she said.

Family and friends said Mr. Garner was married with six children and two grandchildren.

—Joe Jackson and Michael Howard Saul contributed to this article.

**Ouze**

Spoiler:

the coroner's office will release a report saying there was a pre-existing condition which killed this man, and the fact there was video showing the unlawful chokehold is the only reason that, instead of getting offf scot-free, these officers will instead get a paid suspension\vacations, courtesy of the NY taxpayers. At some point in the future, the city will settle with this gentlemans family (also courtesy of the NY taxpayer), and the world will keep on spinning on, "justice" having been served.

**LordofHats**

Ouze wrote:
Spoiler:

the coroner's office will release a report saying there was a pre-existing condition which killed this man, and the fact there was video showing the unlawful chokehold is the only reason that, instead of getting offf scot-free, these officers will instead get a paid suspension\vacations, courtesy of the NY taxpayers. At some point in the future, the city will settle with this gentlemans family (also courtesy of the NY taxpayer), and the world will keep on spinning on, "justice" having been served.

It's a wonderful way to greet the new day ain't it

**Soladrin**

Out of pure curiosity, why the hell are American cops so fethed up?

**motyak**

Soladrin wrote:
Out of pure curiosity, why the hell are American cops so fethed up?

To be fair, the majority probably get to work, do a good job, and go home. It's just the minority who seem to screw things up so preposterously amazingly terrifyingly badly that it tars the rest with the same brush. I'm sure there are some yank peelers on here, and we wouldn't want to generalise and hurt their feelings.

**LordofHats**

Soladrin wrote:
Out of pure curiosity, why the hell are American cops so fethed up?

Leading reason; because they're pretty much immune from the consequences of their actions (as Ouze suggests above).

Want something truly, truly, fethed up?

WARNING: Graphic. Very graphic;

Spoiler:

This incident is the police beating and death of Kelly Thomas, aka Rodney King 2.0. Both officers involved were exonerated for his death.

Being a cop in the US is about as close to absolute immunity as any human can get without being a federal politician.

**Mr. Burning**

"Guns don't kill people, coppers do,
Ask any American family and they'll tell you its true".

There is some small irony of an asthmatic cigarette dealer, negated, of course by his death.

**NuggzTheNinja**

Soladrin wrote:
Out of pure curiosity, why the hell are American cops so fethed up?

Honestly? The job attracts sociopathic, violent people. These no-knock warrants are a direct symptom of hiring people who want to get jazzed up and strut around in tactical gear kicking down doors, but are afraid to join the military and do it to real bad guys.

There are good cops out there. There are also a LOT of bad ones.

**WarOne**

motyak wrote:
Soladrin wrote:
Out of pure curiosity, why the hell are American cops so fethed up?

To be fair, the majority probably get to work, do a good job, and go home. It's just the minority who seem to screw things up so preposterously amazingly terrifyingly badly that it tars the rest with the same brush. I'm sure there are some yank peelers on here, and we wouldn't want to generalise and hurt their feelings.

And even the good can go "bad," bad in such a way that they are human and will make a decision based off of a rash and quick thinking solution and because of who they are, most likely will end up creating a situation where they kill a person or make someone's life markedly different for a really, really long time.

The United States has a problem with the laws it creates and chooses to enforce. Cops in Colorado basically threw there hands up in the air with the Federal anti-drug laws and the state pro-drug laws and decided to make their own interpretations of said law to try and ease in the contradictory stance they have.

And to top it all off, they have to deal with people such as the dead guy and many, many others who slowly grind their gears over the course of years and months (note the 31 arrests on his record). Cops said they saw him selling illegal cigarettes, they try to arrest him and he says he does want to be touched and then they grab him from behind, wrestle him down, and he gets a heart attack. Now the cops saw something that they didn't like and decided to arrest the individual.

All of this adds to the decision to choke hold him and force him down was a poor one and should not have been done that way. The cops made a rash decision, and also it seems there is past history. Did that play a factor in their decision to wrestle him down? I wouldn't be surprised. Did they do it because he is a big dude and swarming like that made it easier for him to go down? Also wouldn't be surprised.

And now the community and his family have a video that for the rest of their lives can replay over and over again of a situation that was handled poorly and ended in a death that shouldn't of happened.

**marv335**

Mr. Garner has a criminal record that includes more than 30 arrests dating back to 1980 on charges such as assault, resisting arrest, grand larceny.

This is something that is being overlooked, I feel.

**WarOne**

marv335 wrote:
Mr. Garner has a criminal record that includes more than 30 arrests dating back to 1980 on charges such as assault, resisting arrest, grand larceny.

This is something that is being overlooked, I feel.

I agree that it might play a factor in why the cops decided to choose the course of action that he did, especially since most of his arrests since 2009 are for selling illegal cigarettes.

Which means either he has been unfairly targeted all those times or really should of known better.

It still does not excuse the choke hold though. Call for more back up or having him escorted away would of been better answers.

**LordofHats**

WarOne wrote:
marv335 wrote:
Mr. Garner has a criminal record that includes more than 30 arrests dating back to 1980 on charges such as assault, resisting arrest, grand larceny.

This is something that is being overlooked, I feel.

I agree that it might play a factor in why the cops decided to choose the course of action that he did, especially since most of his arrests since 2009 are for selling illegal cigarettes.

Which means either he has been unfairly targeted all those times or really should of known better.

It still does not excuse the choke hold though. Call for more back up or having him escorted away would of been better answers.

I'm afraid you don't understand. People only care about excessive force when the innocent get hurt. Likes babies and the elderly. Clearly by selling some cigs illegally, Mr. Garner was asking for it and deserved much worse for his vile crimes.

Blame the Victim

**hotsauceman1**

I say the video, the guy was being uncooperative and about to attack the police officer

**Soladrin**

WarOne wrote:
motyak wrote:
Soladrin wrote:
Out of pure curiosity, why the hell are American cops so fethed up?

To be fair, the majority probably get to work, do a good job, and go home. It's just the minority who seem to screw things up so preposterously amazingly terrifyingly badly that it tars the rest with the same brush. I'm sure there are some yank peelers on here, and we wouldn't want to generalise and hurt their feelings.

And even the good can go "bad," bad in such a way that they are human and will make a decision based off of a rash and quick thinking solution and because of who they are, most likely will end up creating a situation where they kill a person or make someone's life markedly different for a really, really long time.

The United States has a problem with the laws it creates and chooses to enforce. Cops in Colorado basically threw there hands up in the air with the Federal anti-drug laws and the state pro-drug laws and decided to make their own interpretations of said law to try and ease in the contradictory stance they have.

And to top it all off, they have to deal with people such as the dead guy and many, many others who slowly grind their gears over the course of years and months (note the 31 arrests on his record). Cops said they saw him selling illegal cigarettes, they try to arrest him and he says he does want to be touched and then they grab him from behind, wrestle him down, and he gets a heart attack. Now the cops saw something that they didn't like and decided to arrest the individual.

All of this adds to the decision to choke hold him and force him down was a poor one and should not have been done that way. The cops made a rash decision, and also it seems there is past history. Did that play a factor in their decision to wrestle him down? I wouldn't be surprised. Did they do it because he is a big dude and swarming like that made it easier for him to go down? Also wouldn't be surprised.

And now the community and his family have a video that for the rest of their lives can replay over and over again of a situation that was handled poorly and ended in a death that shouldn't of happened.

Yeah, but. most of these things are true for police anywhere, yet we don't see these cases in my country, even if you look at difference in population they should still be popping up if it's just a case of built up work stress etc. I
It seems like the whole mentality with cops is just different in the US. I have absolutely no problem just walking up to a cop on the street and just having a nice chat without any any reason to do so. Cops are really nice (most of the time offcourse).

**Asherian Command**

hotsauceman1 wrote:
I say the video, the guy was being uncooperative and about to attack the police officer

But did he really deserve to die? No. He maybe a criminal, but that does not give them the lisence to maim or kill people.

**Dreadclaw69**

marv335 wrote:
Mr. Garner has a criminal record that includes more than 30 arrests dating back to 1980 on charges such as assault, resisting arrest, grand larceny.

This is something that is being overlooked, I feel.

And what conduct that was reported, and recorded, do you feel warranted the use of a choke hold? A practice that has not been permitted by the NYPD over 20 years ago.
Why did the NYPD officers not issue a citation instead of escalating the encounter?
Why did the NYPD officers continue to use the forbidden restraint technique when the deceased complained that he could not breathe?

**WarOne**

Soladrin wrote:

Yeah, but. most of these things are true for police anywhere, yet we don't see these cases in my country, even if you look at difference in population they should still be popping up if it's just a case of built up work stress etc. I
It seems like the whole mentality with cops is just different in the US. I have absolutely no problem just walking up to a cop on the street and just having a nice chat without any any reason to do so. Cops are really nice (most of the time offcourse).

Police culture and different law systems I believe do make a difference. My father just being a former correctional officer for Riker's Island (imagine Law and Order) refuses to even to this day after decades of retirement to tell me what crap he had to go through while he worked in jail. His sister (my aunt), who worked at a Nassau County correctional facility gives me the same treatment. Simply put, they tell me its not worth rehashing all the crap they had to put up with. They'd rather not have to think about all the stuff they encountered while policing these jails.

So perhaps its much to do with mentality in general of American criminals and American law enforcement.

**Iron_Captain**

Wow.
I don't even need to watch Russian tv anymore to get my fix of anti-American propaganda. On behalf of all Russian propaganda makers, I would like to greatly thank the US police corps.

But in all seriousness, this is really fethed up.

**Seaward**

Dreadclaw69 wrote:
Why did the NYPD officers continue to use the forbidden restraint technique when the deceased complained that he could not breathe?

Not that I'm in favor of choke holds, but if you can repeatedly say, "I can't breathe!" then you can, in fact, breathe.

**MrDwhitey**

I wonder what he died of then.

**Dreadclaw69**

Saying "I can't breathe" is a little more urgent and gets the point across better than "You are restricting my airflow, and I am having trouble getting enough oxygen Officer".

Automatically Appended Next Post:

MrDwhitey wrote:
I wonder what he died of then.

Spontaneous lung cancer from all those illegal cigarettes he was carrying

**Soladrin**

WarOne wrote:
Soladrin wrote:

Yeah, but. most of these things are true for police anywhere, yet we don't see these cases in my country, even if you look at difference in population they should still be popping up if it's just a case of built up work stress etc. I
It seems like the whole mentality with cops is just different in the US. I have absolutely no problem just walking up to a cop on the street and just having a nice chat without any any reason to do so. Cops are really nice (most of the time offcourse).

Police culture and different law systems I believe do make a difference. My father just being a former correctional officer for Riker's Island (imagine Law and Order) refuses to even to this day after decades of retirement to tell me what crap he had to go through while he worked in jail. His sister (my aunt), who worked at a Nassau County correctional facility gives me the same treatment. Simply put, they tell me its not worth rehashing all the crap they had to put up with. They'd rather not have to think about all the stuff they encountered while policing these jails.

So perhaps its much to do with mentality in general of American criminals and American law enforcement.

I wonder if it's also a bit of a vicious cycle where the general populace doesn't trust cops and in turn cops don't trust population etc.

**d-usa**

It's almost like they don't make a device that can be fired from a few feet away that shoots electricity through an uncooperative suspect and subdues him without requiring an illegal choke hold...

**Soladrin**

d-usa wrote:
It's almost like they don't make a device that can be fired from a few feet away that shoots electricity through an uncooperative suspect and subdues him without requiring an illegal choke hold...

MY GOD MAN, THIS ISN'T SCIFI!

**cincydooley**

Let's not weep for this piece of garbage too much. Did he deserve to die? Maybe not. Is the world a worse place without him? Probably not.

The cops probably shouldn't have used an illegal choke hold, but it's not like they could easily use a legal restraining hold due to the human gak stains size.

Automatically Appended Next Post:
And please, let's not ignore the fact that it took FOUR of them to get him to the ground.

**d-usa**

cincydooley wrote:
Let's not weep for this piece of garbage too much. Did he deserve to die? Maybe not. Is the world a worse place without him? Probably not.

The cops probably shouldn't have used an illegal choke hold, but it's not like they could easily use a legal restraining hold due to the human gak stains size.

Automatically Appended Next Post:
And please, let's not ignore the fact that it took FOUR of them to get him to the ground.

*stamps Bingo card*

**hotsauceman1**

d-usa wrote:
cincydooley wrote:
Let's not weep for this piece of garbage too much. Did he deserve to die? Maybe not. Is the world a worse place without him? Probably not.

The cops probably shouldn't have used an illegal choke hold, but it's not like they could easily use a legal restraining hold due to the human gak stains size.

Automatically Appended Next Post:
And please, let's not ignore the fact that it took FOUR of them to get him to the ground.

*stamps Bingo card*

Yeah that is kinda cold hearted.

**Hulksmash**

I only have issue with the choke hold being used. Nobody deserves to die over cigarettes. Taser him and if that doesn't work I'm pretty sure there are other legal means to put him on the ground. Dude might have had a heart attack anyway not matter what was used but at least the arrest would have been done per procedure.

**timetowaste85**

hotsauceman1 wrote:
d-usa wrote:
cincydooley wrote:
Let's not weep for this piece of garbage too much. Did he deserve to die? Maybe not. Is the world a worse place without him? Probably not.

The cops probably shouldn't have used an illegal choke hold, but it's not like they could easily use a legal restraining hold due to the human gak stains size.

Automatically Appended Next Post:
And please, let's not ignore the fact that it took FOUR of them to get him to the ground.

*stamps Bingo card*

Yeah that is kinda cold hearted.

Given the source of the comment, are either of you surprised?

On topic, it sounds like they've gone through this song and dance with the guy before, used a method that they shouldn't have (maybe because they've tried other ways before, who knows) and he had an asthma attack and died. Total accident, the cops did their job (incorrectly, of course) and someone who should have been sent prosecuted (or possibly put into a psych ward for evaluation as he's been arrested over and over for the same thing...definition of "insanity" and all) died instead. Accident. It sucks, and a mistake was made, and the cops should be fined to the full extent for the use of improper restraint. Should they be charged with manslaughter? I honestly don't know. I don't know enough to say for sure, so I won't. But I do know that I strongly feel they should suffer the maximum penalty for disobeying police policy on restraining criminals, as their mistake helped cost a man his life.

**d-usa**

In the ideal world:

Any cop that breaks the rules should lose any advantage/consideration/immunity that he would gain in that situation by virtue of being a cop.

If he dies because a cop pepper sprayed him, tazed him, and then jumped him with 5 other guys because he is still resisting and the cop used nothing but legal moves and following the departments use-of-force policy then it's a tragedy. But if the cops did everything right then they should be protected as guys that did their job and followed the rules.

If he dies after a cop breaks the rules and does something that was not allowed, then the fact that the cop is a cop should no longer matter at all. At that point the cop should be treated like a random guy that walked up to him and choked him and caused his death and be charged with manslaughter and be judged by a jury and not a disciplinary board.

Of course in the real world this will never happen.