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Killing of Akai Gurley

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Shooting of Akai Gurley
DateNovember 20, 2014 (2014-11-20)
Timec. 11:15 p.m. EST
LocationBrooklyn, New York City, New York, U.S.
ParticipantsKilled: Akai Gurley
Officers: Peter Liang and Shaun Landau
Deaths1
SuspectsPeter Liang
ChargesSecond-degree manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, second-degree assault, reckless endangerment, two counts of official misconduct
ConvictionsManslaughter, official misconduct
SentenceFive years of probation
Litigation$52 million lawsuit filed by Gurley's family against City of New York

Akai Gurley, a 28-year-old African-American man, was fatally shot on November 20, 2014, in Brooklyn, New York City, United States, by a New York City Police Department officer. Two police officers, patrolling stairwells in the New York City Housing Authority (NYCHA)'s Louis H. Pink Houses in East New York, Brooklyn, entered a pitch-dark, unlit stairwell, one of them, Officer Peter Liang, 27, with his firearm drawn. Gurley and his girlfriend entered the seventh-floor stairwell, fourteen steps below them. The shooting was declared an accidental discharge; the bullet ricocheted off the wall and Gurley was struck once in the chest and soon died from the shot.

On February 10, 2015, Liang was indicted by a grand jury on manslaughter, assault, and other criminal charges. He turned himself in to authorities the next day to be arraigned on the charges. Liang was convicted of manslaughter and official misconduct on February 11, 2016. He was expected to appeal while he remained free without bail. On March 28, 2016, the prosecuting Brooklyn District Attorney Kenneth P. Thompson recommended to Judge Danny Chun that Liang serve only house arrest and community service for his sentencing.[1]

On April 19, 2016, Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Danny Chun sentenced Peter Liang to five years of probation and 800 hours community service, after downgrading his manslaughter conviction to criminally negligent homicide.[2]

Background

Akai Gurley

Akai Kareem Gurley (c. 1986 – November 20, 2014) was born in Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands, the Caribbean, and moved to New York when he was a child.[3] He was a resident of the Louis H. Pink Houses, where he lived with his girlfriend and two-year-old daughter. According to police, Gurley had 24 prior arrests on his record.[4][5]

Officer Peter Liang

Peter Liang (born c. 1987), a Hong Kong American, had less than 18 months of experience with the New York City Police Department (NYPD) at the time of the shooting. Liang was born in Hong Kong, immigrated to the United States as a child and lived in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn, with his parents and grandmother; he also has a younger brother in college.[6] Liang had aspired to become a police officer since he was a child.[7]

Location

The Louis H. Pink Houses are considered to be among the worst housing developments in New York.[8] Patrick Lynch, head of the Patrolmen's Benevolent Association of the City of New York, characterizes them as "among the most dangerous projects in the city" with dimly lit stairwells presenting a particular danger.[9] Police Commissioner Bill Bratton reported that there had been a recent "spike in violence" in the neighborhood over the preceding months with two homicides, two robberies, and four assaults,[9][10]

Two rookie police officers were assigned to the Louis H. Pink Houses where they were conducting routine vertical patrols,[11][12] in which officers patrol a public housing complex from the roof to the ground floor, stopping on each floor to see if there is any crime in progress.[10][13] The New York Daily News initiated rumors that their commander had instructed officers in the area not to carry out vertical patrols and instead to conduct exterior policing in the East New York housing project, and that the officers were texting their union representative as Gurley lay dying. The rumors were later debunked by the District Attorney's office, but the Daily News did not issue a retraction or apology.[14] The NYPD’s policy on whether an officer should keep a weapon holstered on such patrols is purposely vague and the decision as to when to take out a firearm is left to the discretion of the officers, according to Police Commissioner Bill Bratton.[15] The department also insists that officers place their fingers on the trigger only upon encountering "extreme and particularized danger."[16] During trial testimony, officers testified that they were taught during academy training to have their guns out at times for fear of possible "ambush" or when they felt "unsafe", and that they were specifically trained to take out their firearm as they approached a roof landing because it was "dangerous". One officer testified that cops are taught to beware of a possible "ambush" on vertical patrols specifically. She also testified that you were taught that when you approach a roof landing, you should have your firearm out, finger alongside the trigger.[17] At the time the gun was discharged, the light in the stairwell on the 8th floor was broken and it was pitch black.

Shooting

Akai Gurley, 28 years old, was visiting his girlfriend and getting his hair braided before Thanksgiving. He entered the stairwell on the 7th floor, below Officers Shaun Landau and Peter Liang, who were patrolling the pitch-dark stairwell with no lights. According to the prosecutors, seconds earlier, Officer Liang, who is left-handed, pulled out his flashlight with his right hand and unholstered his 9mm Glock with his left. He then shoved open the stairwell door with his right shoulder with his gun drawn pointed down the way police officers are trained. It appeared neither side knew the other was there and no words were exchanged, according to authorities.[18] Liang's gun accidentally discharged as he opened the door and the bullet ricocheted off the wall and struck Gurley once in the chest, who died within a few minutes.[19][20][21] Upon entering, Liang said he heard "a quick sound" to his left which startled him. He turned left and "it just went off when my whole body tensed up", Liang testified.[22] It was reported that Gurley actually ran after hearing the gunshot, and didn’t realize he was bleeding until collapsing on the fifth floor.[21]

Similarity to the shooting of Timothy Stansbury Jr.

The fatal shooting of Akai Gurley is notably[23][24] similar to the shooting death of Timothy Stansbury Jr. that occurred in January 2004, when Officer Richard S. Neri killed Timothy Stansbury Jr., 19, on a roof at the Louis Armstrong Houses in Brooklyn at about 1 a.m. when Officer Neri, with his gun drawn, approached a rooftop door to check the stairway inside. A grand jury declined to indict Officer Neri on charges of criminally negligent homicide, declaring the event an accident, after he gave testimony that he had unintentionally fired; he was startled, he said, when Mr. Stansbury pushed open a rooftop door in a place where drug dealing was rampant.[25][26][27]

Aftermath

New York City Police Commissioner Bill Bratton declared the shooting to be an accident and that Gurley was a "total innocent".[28] Kings County District Attorney Kenneth P. Thompson said that he planned to impanel a grand jury to look into the death of Akai Gurley.[20][29] Media reports initially surfaced that indicated both officers text-messaged their union representatives before calling for help,[14] which were later refuted as false by both the police union and the District Attorney office.[30][31]

Akai Gurley's funeral was conducted December 6 at the Brown Memorial Baptist Church in Fort Greene. Initially Al Sharpton offered to speak at the service, but stepped down after a dispute within the family. Instead activist Kevin Powell spoke at the service.[32][33] Gurley is interred at Rosedale Memorial Park in Linden, New Jersey.[3]

The continued conduct of vertical patrols has also been scrutinized in the wake of Gurley's shooting. Police Commissioner William Bratton has said that the patrols are needed to reduce crime,[10][13] and vertical patrols continue to be conducted in the Louis H. Pink Houses.[34] On February 5, 2016, while Liang's trial was ongoing, two NYPD officers were shot while conducting vertical patrols at a housing development in the Bronx, although both were expected to survive.[35][36]

Reactions

Chinese-Americans

Protestors supporting Peter Liang on February 20, 2016, at Boston Common

More than 3,000 Chinese-Americans showed up at New York City Hall in March 2015 to support Liang. Thousands walked across the Brooklyn Bridge to Manhattan's Chinatown in April, feeling that Liang was being used as a scapegoat, and demanded the charges to be dropped, as other, white police officers were previously not charged.[37][38] Following his conviction, Asian-Americans denounced the verdict at various gatherings across the country, many expressing dismay and frustration. There were differing opinions among Liang's supporters, with some still feeling that he should not have been prosecuted at all, and some feeling that he should have been prosecuted but that a manslaughter verdict was too harsh as it carries a maximum sentence of 15 years in jail, but all agreeing that the overall system needs a change.[39][40][41] State Assemblyman Ron Kim stated, "I do not believe true justice prevailed. Our system failed Gurley and it failed Liang. It pitted the unjust death of an innocent young black man against the unjust scapegoating of a young Asian police officer who was frightened, poorly trained, and who committed a terrible accident."[42] Nearly 15,000 people protested on behalf of Liang in New York on February 20, 2016,[43] and protests were also held in other cities across the United States on the same day. Liang's supporters held signs with condolences for Gurley, as well as MLK signs and signs asking for justice for Liang (after a white police officer was not prosecuted for the death of Eric Garner). Many of Liang's supporters demanded that ALL killers should be prosecuted and that there should be no such thing as selective prosecution, scapegoating, or racism.[44][45]

Joseph Lin, a real estate agent and activist, had helped to organize the protests due to feeling that Asian-Americans had been too "passive" or "indifferent" with no political voice, saying that "If he’s a black officer, I guarantee you Al Sharpton will come out. If he’s Hispanic, all the congressmen will come out. But no, he’s a Chinese, so no one is coming out."[41]

New York City councilwoman Margaret Chin stated that she was satisfied with the grand jury indicting Liang but she also asked for leniency in Liang’s sentencing.[46][47][48]

Black Lives Matter movement

Gurley's death was one of several police killings of African Americans protested by the Black Lives Matter movement.[49] On December 27, 2014, 200 people marched in Brooklyn to protest the fatal shooting of Akai Gurley on the same day as the funeral for slain NYPD Officer Rafael Ramos, who was killed in the 2014 killings of NYPD officers, despite calls from the mayor to postpone demonstrations.[50][51][52]

On February 10, 2015, Officer Peter Liang was indicted by a grand jury for the shooting death of Akai Gurley. He was charged with second-degree manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, second-degree assault, reckless endangerment, and two counts of official misconduct. Liang had a court date on February 11, and turned himself in that day.[53][54] He pleaded not guilty to the charges and was released without having to post bond, and suspended from his job without pay. His trial started on January 25, 2016. Liang was convicted of manslaughter and official misconduct on February 11, 2016.[55] Liang now faced anywhere from no jail to a maximum of 15 years of prison when sentenced in April.[19] His lawyers planned to submit an appeal to Judge Danny Chun while Liang remained free without bail.[42] Delores Jones-Brown, a professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice, speculated to The Atlantic that Liang would have avoided conviction had he rendered aid to Gurley, while jurors later reported that the effort required for them to pull the trigger on a police-issued pistol led them to disbelieve that Liang's testimony was completely true.[56]

Shaun Landau, the other officer involved, was not criminally implicated in Gurley's death.[52] However, he was fired from the NYPD one day after his partner was convicted. Officer Landau, like Liang, was also within his two-year probationary period, and his firing after the trial was within his contract. Landau testified at the trial of his former partner under immunity from prosecution. Landau described his partner as "in shock" and that "[Liang] couldn't believe he just shot someone." He said that neither of them tried to revive Mr. Gurley, with both of them saying that they did not feel qualified to perform CPR. Both radioed for an ambulance, as Gurley's girlfriend unsuccessfully performed CPR.[57][58]

On April 19, 2016, Brooklyn Supreme Court Justice Danny Chun sentenced Peter Liang to five years of probation and 800 hours community service. Chun believes incarceration is "unnecessary”, but "he will be much more productive if he spends more time in community service.” This sentence is in line with previous sentencing for accidental shootings by police officers convicted of negligence (last one was in 2005).[2][59]

Media coverage

The incident received national and international coverage, in part due to the time of its occurrence shortly after the August 2014 police shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri; the July 2014 death of Eric Garner in Staten Island, which also involved police officers; and the Ferguson unrest after Brown's fatal shooting, which had attracted public attention.[60][61]

The New York City Police Department's practice of vertical patrols was also criticized.[62][63] The Village Voice described the incident as part of a year of public relations disasters for the NYPD.[64] Other coverage has focused on the maintenance and public safety issues that led to the death.[65][66][67]

See also

References

  1. ^ Kapp, Trevor. "Peter Liang To Be Sentenced Tuesday for Manslaughter Conviction". DNAinfo.com. Retrieved 19 April 2016. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |website= (help)
  2. ^ a b Saul, Emily (April 19, 2016). "NYPD cop Peter Liang gets community service for killing Akai Gurley". New York Post. Retrieved April 19, 2016.
  3. ^ a b Akai Kareem Gurley's funeral service program, Dec. 6, 2014, Brown Memorial Baptist Church, Brooklyn
  4. ^ "Bratton: Fatal Police-Involved Shooting of Unarmed Man at Brooklyn Housing Complex 'Unfortunate Tragedy'". CBS New York. November 21, 2014. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
  5. ^ Saul, Josh (November 21, 2014). "Man killed by NYPD rookie planned to surprise mom in Florida". New York Post. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
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  7. ^ "他真的很好 鄰居為梁彼得叫屈". World Journal 世界日报. 12 February 2015.
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  10. ^ a b c Christopher Mathias (December 10, 2014). "Akai Gurley's Death Shines Harsh Light On Vertical Patrols In Public Housing". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 11 April 2015.
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  13. ^ a b "Akai Gurley, Unarmed Man, Shot By NYPD". Huffington Post. 22 November 2014.
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  23. ^ "Lupica: Shooting of Akai Gurley doesn't make East New York into Ferguson, or officer into a criminal". New York Daily News. 23 November 2014.
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  27. ^ Koo, George. "Peter Liang is unlucky to be an Asian New York cop". Asia Times. Retrieved 21 February 2016.
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  30. ^ "Grand Jury To Hear Case Of Unarmed Man Shot By New York Cop In Stairwell". BuzzFeed News. 5 December 2014.
  31. ^ "Here's What It'd Take To Convict The NYPD Cop Who Killed Akai Gurley". Huffington Post. 12 February 2015.
  32. ^ "Relatives Mourn Akai Gurley, An Innocent Man Killed By The NYPD". Gothamist. 7 December 2014.
  33. ^ "Memorial for Akai Gurley, Unarmed Man Shot by NYPD, Set for Today". The Village Voice. 5 December 2014.
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  36. ^ Baker, Al (5 February 2016). "Shootings in Public Housing Project Highlight Risks of Stairwell Patrols". The New York Times. Retrieved 23 February 2016. {{cite news}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
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  50. ^ "Watch Brooklyn Protesters Demand Justice for Akai Gurley". Https:. Retrieved January 4, 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: extra punctuation (link)
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  55. ^ Carrega-Woodby, Christina; Marzulli, John; Brown Stephen Rex (February 11, 2016). "NYPD Officer Peter Liang found guilty of second-degree manslaughter in fatal shooting of Akai Gurley in Brooklyn housing development". New York Daily News. Retrieved February 11, 2016. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |publisher= (help)
  56. ^ Phippen, J. Weston (3 March 2016). "Why Was Officer Peter Liang Convicted?". The Atlantic. Retrieved 10 April 2016.
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  60. ^ "A Look at Recent Police Killings Cited in Protests". ABC News. 22 December 2014.
  61. ^ Nessen, Stephen (5 December 2014). "Like Michael Brown And Eric Garner, Akai Gurley's Death Inspires Anger". NPR.
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  64. ^ Toth, Kathie (19 December 2014). "The Year in NYPD Public Relations Disasters". The Village Voice.
  65. ^ Floyd, Gregory (19 December 2014). "Let's take the longer view on NYCHA's safety". New York Amsterdam News.
  66. ^ Shalev, Asaf (18 December 2014). "After Akai Gurley: The Connection Between Maintenance and Safety in Public Housing". The Brooklyn Ink.
  67. ^ "I-Team: Darkened Stairwell Not the Only Problem at Police Shooting Building". NBC New York. 16 December 2014.
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