Shooting of Akai Gurley

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Shooting of Akai Gurley
Time c. 11:15 p.m.
Date November 20, 2014 (2014-11-20)
Location East New York, Brooklyn, New York, United States
Participants Killed: Akai Gurley
Officers: Peter Liang and Shaun Landau
Deaths 1
Suspect(s) Peter Liang
Charges Second-degree manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, second-degree assault, reckless endangerment, two counts of official misconduct
Convictions Manslaughter, official misconduct
Litigation Gurley's family filed a lawsuit against the City of New York, seeking $50 million

The shooting of Akai Gurley, a 28-year-old African-American man, occurred on November 20, 2014, in Brooklyn, New York City, United States. He was shot 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 later died at the hospital.[1][2]

On February 10, 2015, Liang was indicted by a grand jury on manslaughter, assault, and other criminal charges.[3] He turned himself in to authorities the next day to be arraigned on the charges. Liang was found guilty of manslaughter and official misconduct on February 11, 2016.[4] He is expected to appeal while he remains free without bail.[5]

Backgrounds[edit]

Akai Gurley[edit]

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.[6] He was a resident of the Louis H. Pink Houses, where he lived with his girlfriend and two-year-old daughter. He has 24 prior arrests on his record, which consisted of drug dealing arrests.[7][8]

Officer Peter Liang[edit]

Peter Liang (born c. 1987), a Hong Kong American, had less than 18 months of experience with New York Police Department (NYPD) at the time of the shooting. He lived in Bensonhurst, Brooklyn with his parents and grandmother,[9] immigrating to New York City from Hong Kong as a child with his parents. His father is a cook, while his mother works at a clothing factory. Liang graduated from M.S. 131 School located in Chinatown, Manhattan, and is said to have many African American friends and he often played sports with them while at school. He also has a younger brother who is in college.[10] Liang had aspired to become a police officer since he was a child.[11]

Location[edit]

According to Patrick Lynch, head of the Patrolmen's Benevolent Association of the City of New York, “[t]he Pink Houses are among the most dangerous projects in the city, and their stairwells are the most dangerous places in the projects."[12] There had been a recent spate of crime in the Louis Pink Houses; NYPD statistics and Police Commissioner Bill Bratton reported that there had been two murders, two robberies, and four shootings in the Pink Houses alone over the past month.[12][13]

Shooting[edit]

Two rookie police officers assigned to the crime-ridden NYCHA's Louis H. Pink Houses were, reportedly from unknown sources, against orders,[14] [but no such substantiation was produced in the court] conducting a vertical patrol,[15] 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.[16] 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 a firearm out is left to the discretion of the officers, according to Police Commissioner Bill Bratton.[17]

At the time of gun was discharged, the light in the stairwell at 8th floor was broken.

The 28-year-old, unarmed Akai Gurley was visiting his girlfriend and getting his hair braided before Thanksgiving. He entered the stairwell about a flight below Officers Shaun Landau and Peter Liang, who were patrolling the pitch-dark stairwell with no lights. According to the prosecutors, 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, turned left to face the seventh-floor landing, where Gurley had just entered. It appeared neither side knew the other was there and no words were exchanged, according to authorities.[18] After being startled, Liang's gun accidentally discharged as he opened the door and the bullet ricocheted off the wall and struck Gurley once in the chest; he later died at the hospital.[1][2] It is reported that Gurley actually ran after hearing the gunshot, and didn’t realize that he was bleeding until collapsing on the fifth floor.[2]

Similarity to the shooting of Timothy Stansbury Jr.[edit]

The death of Akai Gurley is notably[19][20] 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.[21][22][23]

Aftermath[edit]

New York City Police Commissioner Bill Bratton declared the shooting to be an accident and that Gurley was a "total innocent".[24] Kings county district attorney Kenneth P. Thompson said that he planned to impanel a grand jury to look into the death of Akai Gurley.[1][25]

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.[26][27] On 27 December, 200 people marched in Brooklyn, NY to protest the killing of Akai Gurley.[28] He is interred at Rosedale Memorial Park in Linden, New Jersey.[6]

Chinese-Americans[edit]

Most of the Chinese American population generally calls for leniency for Officer Liang. However, some in the community have opposed leniency. Notably, New York City councilwoman Margaret Chin stated that she was satisfied with the grand jury indicting Liang. Likewise, Esther Wang of the CAAV, another Chinese American organization has also stated that she does not support leniency, a stance where she claimed that those who support Liang are hypocritical, basically saying that it is okay to continue the police brutality.[29][30]

More than 3,000 Chinese Americans showed up at City Hall in March 2015 to support Liang, while some in the community opposed leniency for Liang. According to the Lawyer Herald, the major issue is not whether Liang was accountable for the killing, but rather why after all the white officers who shot black men could go free and Liang was singled out and not granted any leniency mainly due to past events leading up to the current political turmoil of today.[31] Thousands walked across the Brooklyn Bridge to Manhattan's Chinatown in April,[32] 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.[33][34] Following the conviction, Asian-Americans denounced the verdict at various gatherings, many expressing dismay and frustration.[35] 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."[5] 10,000 people protested on behalf of Liang in New York on February 20, 2016,[36] and thousands other protested in nearly 40 other cities across the United States at the same time.[37]

Black Lives Matter[edit]

Gurley's death was one of several police killings of African Americans protested by the Black Lives Matter movement.[38][39] According to the Washington Post, Liang's indictment comes during a time when police brutality became a major issue for the N.Y.P.D. and that the department is being scrutinized for their actions. Some Chinese Americans also took to the streets along with the Black Lives Matter protestors, with some holding up signs in Chinese while chanting "Hands up to the sky! We want justice for Akai!", while others marched because they feared that the rookie cop would be prosecuted not for his own crime, but rather for those of the white police officers who have committed similar acts while escaping punishment, such as the during the case of Eric Garner.[40][41]

NYPD[edit]

The Asian community believes the justice system this time has picked up Peter Liang as an easy target and he is unlucky to be an Asian New York cop.[42]

In Liang’s case, the public and Asian community constantly question the NYPD whether they have trained/prepared inexperienced Liang and his partner enough to cope with difficult situations like what they’d encountered at the Pink Houses. Peter Liang’s lawyers had argued that Liang was in a state of shock over what he had done; they said he felt unqualified to perform CPR, as is required of an officer under such circumstances, because he received poor training at the Police Academy. His partner, Officer Shaun Landau, who was provided immunity from prosecution, also testified that they had received little training.[43]

Legal proceedings[edit]

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.[44] He pleaded not guilty to the charges and was released without having to post bond, and suspended from his job without pay. Peter Liang's trial started on January 25, 2016. Liang was found guilty of manslaughter and official misconduct on February 11, 2016.[4] Liang now faces anywhere from no jail to a maximum of 15 years of prison when he is sentenced April 14.[45] His lawyers are planning to submit an appeal to Judge Danny Chun while Liang currently remains free without bail.[5]

Shaun Landau, the other officer involved, was not criminally implicated in Gurley's death.[41] 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 was forced testify against his former partner in exchange for immunity from the prosecutors. 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.[46][47] Evidence showed that both officers delayed calling for medical assistance after Gurley was mortally wounded.[48]

Media coverage[edit]

The incident has received national and international coverage, in part due to the time of its occurrence shortly after the recent police shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, Missouri, the death of Eric Garner in Staten Island, New York, and the Ferguson unrest, which had attracted public attention.[49][50]

The New York Police Department's practice of vertical patrols has also come under criticism.[51][52] The Village Voice described the incident as part of a year of public relations disasters for the NYPD.[53] Other coverage has focused on the maintenance and public safety issues that led to the death.[54][55][56]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Jump up to: a b c Izadi, Elahe; Holley, Peter (21 November 2014). "Officer’s Errant Shot Kills Unarmed Brooklyn Man". New York Times Post. Retrieved 26 November 2014. 
  2. ^ Jump up to: a b c "Panicked rookie NYPD officer fatally shoots unarmed 28-year-old man in Brooklyn's Pink Houses project". NEW YORK DAILY NEWS. 21 November 2014. 
  3. Jump up ^ "NYPD Officer Peter Liang Indicted In Fatal Shooting Of Akai Gurley « CBS New York". Newyork.cbslocal.com. Retrieved February 11, 2015. 
  4. ^ Jump up to: a b Carrega-Woodby, Christina; Marzulli, John; Brown Stephen Rex (February 11, 2016). "NYPD Officer Peter Liang found guilty of manslaughter in fatal shooting of Akai Gurley in Brooklyn housing development". New York Daily News. Retrieved February 11, 2016. 
  5. ^ Jump up to: a b c Fuchs, Chris (13 February 2016). "Former NYPD Cop Peter Liang's Guilty Verdict Leaves a Community Divided". NBC News. Retrieved 17 February 2016. 
  6. ^ Jump up to: a b Akai Kareem Gurley's funeral service program, Dec. 6, 2014, Brown Memorial Baptist Church, Brooklyn
  7. Jump up ^ "Bratton: Fatal Police-Involved Shooting of Unarmed Man at Brooklyn Housing Complex ‘Unfortunate Tragedy’". CBS New York. November 21, 2014. Retrieved 11 April 2015. 
  8. Jump up ^ Saul, Josh (November 21, 2014). "Man killed by NYPD rookie planned to surprise mom in Florida". New York Post. Retrieved 11 April 2015. 
  9. Jump up ^ Officer's indictment brings little solace, New York Times
  10. Jump up ^ "梁彼得非裔朋友多 不曾歧視". World Journal 世界日报. 14 February 2015. 
  11. Jump up ^ "他真的很好 鄰居為梁彼得叫屈". World Journal 世界日报. 12 February 2015. 
  12. ^ Jump up to: a b Ben Feuerherd; Lorena Mongelli; Sophia Rosenbaum (November 22, 2014). "Living in fear at the dark & deadly hellhole houses". New York Post. Retrieved 11 April 2015. 
  13. Jump up ^ 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. 
  14. Jump up ^ Rocco Parascandola, Oren Yaniv (5 December 2014). "EXCLUSIVE: Cop texted union rep as Akai Gurley lay dying". NY Daily News. 
  15. Jump up ^ "Akai Gurley, Unarmed Man, Shot By NYPD". Huffington Post. 22 November 2014. 
  16. Jump up ^ Laughland, Oliver (5 December 2014). "Akai Gurley's funeral: a cry for answers". The Guardian. 
  17. Jump up ^ "Rookie cops often assigned to dangerous ‘vertical patrols’". New York Post. 22 November 2014. 
  18. Jump up ^ "NYPD Officer Pleads Not Guilty in Shooting Death of Unarmed Man". The Wall Street Journal. 11 February 2015. 
  19. Jump up ^ "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. 
  20. Jump up ^ Pizarro, Max (21 February 2016). "In Princeton, Chinese Protesters Charge NYPD with Scapegoating Officer Liang". PolitickerNJ. Retrieved 21 February 2016. 
  21. Jump up ^ "Officer’s Errant Shot Kills Unarmed Brooklyn Man". New York Times. 21 November 2014. 
  22. Jump up ^ Levitt, Leonard (18 January 2016). "Liang case underlines issue of race in NYC". AM New York. Retrieved 17 February 2016. 
  23. Jump up ^ Koo, George. "Peter Liang is unlucky to be an Asian New York cop". Asia Times. Retrieved 21 February 2016. 
  24. Jump up ^ "Officer’s Errant Shot Kills Unarmed Brooklyn Man". NY Times. 22 November 2014. 
  25. Jump up ^ Clifford, Stephanie (9 December 2014). "A Police Killing Puts Heavy Expectations on a Prosecutor". NY Times. 
  26. Jump up ^ "Relatives Mourn Akai Gurley, An Innocent Man Killed By The NYPD". Gothamist. 7 December 2014. 
  27. Jump up ^ "Memorial for Akai Gurley, Unarmed Man Shot by NYPD, Set for Today". The Village Voice. 5 December 2014. 
  28. Jump up ^ "Watch Brooklyn Protesters Demand Justice for Akai Gurley". Https:. Retrieved January 4, 2015. 
  29. Jump up ^ "Protests planned after NYPD officer Liang found guilty". 
  30. Jump up ^ Chris Fuchs. "Race 'Doesn't Matter': Reactions to Officer Liang's Indictment". NBC News. 
  31. Jump up ^ "Chinese American community divided over killing of black man Akai Gurley". 
  32. Jump up ^ "Thousands protest prosecution of NYPD officer". News 12. Retrieved 17 February 2016. 
  33. Jump up ^ Qian, Siyu. "Is Police Officer Peter Liang a Scapegoat?". NY City Lens. Retrieved 17 February 2016. 
  34. Jump up ^ Fuchs, Chris (30 March 2015). "National Rallies Planned for Indicted NYPD Officer Peter Liang". NBC News. Retrieved 17 February 2016. 
  35. Jump up ^ Nir, Sarah (12 February 2016). "Many Asians Express Dismay and Frustration After Liang Verdict". The New York Times. Retrieved 17 February 2016. 
  36. Jump up ^ Bain, Eileen AJ; Connelly, Jennifer (February 20, 2016). "10,000 protesters rallying in support of ex-cop Peter Liang". New York Post. Retrieved February 20, 2016. 
  37. Jump up ^ http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/supporters-rally-behind-convicted-peter-liang-article-1.2538533
  38. Jump up ^ Prupis, Nadia. "NYPD Officer Indicted in Shooting of Akai Gurley: Reports". Common Dreams NewsCenter. Retrieved May 26, 2015. 
  39. Jump up ^ "A statement from members of the #BlackLivesMatter team". Retrieved May 25, 2015. 
  40. Jump up ^ "NY police shooting that has divided Chinese Americans will be tried by jury". 
  41. ^ Jump up to: a b "NY police shooting case divides Asian American". 
  42. Jump up ^ "Peter Liang is unlucky to be an Asian New York cop". Retrieved 15 February 2016. 
  43. Jump up ^ "Officer Liang’s Partner Testifies He Got Little CPR Training". Retrieved 4 February 2016. 
  44. Jump up ^ News newspaper=NY1, NY1 (10 February 2015). "Officer Indicted in Shooting Death of Akai Gurley". 
  45. Jump up ^ Italiano, Laura (14 February 2016). "Liang’s appeal to focus on jurors handling his gun". New York Post. Retrieved 17 February 2016. 
  46. Jump up ^ "NYPD OFFICER TESTIFIES AT MANSLAUGHTER TRIAL OF HIS FORMER PARTNER, PETER LIANG". 
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  48. Jump up ^ Anthony M. DeStefano (13 February 2016). "NYPD fires Shaun Landau, partner of Peter Liang, in Akai Gurley case". Newsday. 
  49. Jump up ^ "A Look at Recent Police Killings Cited in Protests". ABC News. 22 December 2014. 
  50. Jump up ^ Nessen, Stephen (5 December 2014). "Like Michael Brown And Eric Garner, Akai Gurley's Death Inspires Anger". NPR. 
  51. Jump up ^ "Lessons From a Stairwell Shooting". NY Times. 2 December 2014. 
  52. Jump up ^ Mathias, Christopher (10 December 2014). "Akai Gurley's Death Shines Harsh Light On Vertical Patrols In Public Housing". Huffington Post. 
  53. Jump up ^ Toth, Kathie (19 December 2014). "The Year in NYPD Public Relations Disasters". The Village Voice. 
  54. Jump up ^ Floyd, Gregory (19 December 2014). "Let’s take the longer view on NYCHA’s safety". New York Amsterdam News. 
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  56. Jump up ^ "I-Team: Darkened Stairwell Not the Only Problem at Police Shooting Building". NBC New York. 16 December 2014. 
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