NYPD Commissioner Fires Officer in Eric Garner Chokehold Case

(Bloomberg) -- New York Police Commissioner James O’Neill fired a white police officer for the 2014 choking of Eric Garner, an unarmed black man whose death while under arrest helped ignite the national Black Lives Matter movement.

O’Neill acted Monday on the Aug. 2 recommendation of NYPD Administrative Law Judge Rosemary Maldonado, who had ruled that Patrolman Daniel Pantaleo, 34, had been untruthful when he denied using a prohibited chokehold to subdue Garner, 43, on a Staten Island sidewalk while arresting him for selling loose untaxed cigarettes.

A video widely viewed on the Internet showed Pantaleo, a 13-year veteran of the force, choking Garner as he repeatedly cried, “I can’t breathe.” Pantaleo’s denials had been “implausible and self-serving,” according to Maldonado’s 46-page opinion obtained by the New York Times.

“It is clear that Daniel Pantaleo can no longer effectively serve as a New York City police officer,” O’Neill said.

O’Neill, who served as a uniformed officer for 34 years before becoming commissioner of the largest U.S. police department, said if he had been a member of the rank-and-file, he “may have made similar mistakes” as Pantaleo and would be angry about the decision to fire him. Yet, O’Neill said, he backed Maldonado’s conclusion that “[Officer Pantaleo’s] use of a prohibited chokehold was reckless and constituted a gross deviation from the standard of conduct established for a New York City police officer.”

The deaths of Garner and Michael Brown, an unarmed black 18-year-old shot by a white police officer in Ferguson, Missouri, served as flash points prompting nationwide demonstrations. Protesters have marched in New York City, disrupting traffic and speaking out on the steps of City Hall on several occasions. The protests reached a peak months after the Staten Island incident when a grand jury declined to file criminal charges against Pantaleo.

De Blasio’s handling of the incident has drawn unwelcome national attention to his record as mayor as he embarked on a long-shot presidential campaign. During a July 31 televised debate among Democratic candidates, rivals said he should have fired Pantaleo five years ago. Demonstrators disrupted the debate shouting “Fire Pantaleo!” and “I can’t breathe!” until they were removed from the audience.

Several of the mayor’s past backers traveled to Detroit to participate in the debate protest, providing more evidence that the case had weakened him with his support among black voters.

De Blasio has said he held off from ordering any disciplinary action against the officer after former U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch, an appointee of former President Barack Obama, requested the city wait until the Justice Department completed criminal and civil rights investigations. They didn’t conclude until last month -- a delay that spurred more City Hall protests led by members of Garner’s family.

De Blasio said Monday he regretted waiting for the Justice Department to complete its review before taking disciplinary action. The commissioner based his decision on a “fair and impartial trial that led to a just result,” de Blasio said.

Garner’s mother, Gwen Carr, has continued to blame de Blasio and the police department. During a City Hall rally earlier this month, she said they had “put up roadblocks and delays at every step of the way.”

“While this may be good for the city that the city could enforce its policies, this is no moment of joy for the Garners,” said Al Sharpton, the civil rights activist, who has organized several of the demonstrations.

The incident has also damaged the mayor’s relationship with rank-and-file police officers. Hundreds turned their backs on him as he arrived at the funeral of a fallen officer, after he had spoken publicly of warnings he imparted to his bi-racial son about interacting with police. The union also chafed at the mayor’s post-Garner push to equip officers with body cameras and institute department-wide sensitivity training to de-escalate hostile encounters.

Pat Lynch, president of the Police Benevolent Association, the patrol officers’ union, has backed Pantaleo, citing state and federal prosecutors’ decisions not to charge him criminally. Lynch has accused the mayor of pressuring the police commissioner to fire Pantaleo.

“This was not a crime; this was a chaotic situation,” Lynch said. “All we ever asked for, for New York City police officers, was fairness in the process. We did not and have not gotten that.”

©2019 Bloomberg L.P.