NYPD union expresses disgust at the ruling.
By Raif Karerat
WASHINGTON, DC: Mere days before the anniversary of his death at the hands of New York City police – an incident that stoked a nationwide dialogue and a slew of protests regarding institutional racism – Eric Garner’s family reached a settlement Monday with the city of New York and will receive $5.9 million for damages related to his death.Follow @ambazaarmag
The decision does not seem to sit well with the head of the Sergeants Benevolent Association, a New York police union, who derided the settlement as “obscene” and “shameful.”
“Where is the justice for New York taxpayers? Where is the consistency in the civil system?” Ed Mullins asked during an interview with the New York Post. “Mr. Garner’s family should not be rewarded simply because he repeatedly chose to break the law and resist arrest,” he continued.
In a video taken by a witness at the scene, Garner, who had asthma, could be heard saying, “I can’t breathe,” 11 times before losing consciousness. He was later pronounced dead at a hospital.
The city medical examiner ruled Garner’s death a homicide, and cited the NYPD-inflicted chokehold as the cause of death. A Staten Island jury declined to indict officer Daniel Pantaleo, who administered the fatal choke, and he is still on the job, albeit working desk duty, reported The Gothamist.
In announcing the settlement — which is the largest ever for a wrongful-death case against an NYPD officer — city Comptroller Scott Stringer stressed the “extraordinary impact” the Staten Islander’s death had on the entire country.
“It forced us to examine the state of race relations, and the relationship between our police force and the people they serve,” he said.
Stringer also noted Garner’s death as a “touchstone … in the history of the entire nation,” while speaking with The New York Times.
Regarding the settlement, he remarked, “Financial compensation is certainly not everything, and it can’t bring Mr. Garner back. But it is our way of creating balance and giving a family a certain closure.”