#FireJonathanRivera for Allan Feliz
Allan Feliz
Allan was murdered after the NYPD illegally detained him during a car stop in the Bronx.
My family and I are outraged and devastated by Commissioner Tisch’s decision to overturn the guilty verdict against Lt. Jonathan Rivera for killing Allan. It proves that she cannot be trusted, and that she is just as corrupt as the rest of the NYPD and the Eric Adams administration.”
Samy Feliz, brother of Allan Feliz
On October 17, 2019, NYPD Lt. Jonathan Rivera (who was a sergeant at the time) and Officers Edward Barrett and Michelle Almanzar pulled Allan Feliz over in the Bronx for allegedly not wearing a seatbelt. Bodyworn camera (bwc) footage shows the officers acknowledging that Allan was wearing his seatbelt, but rather than allowing him to drive away, they escalated by illegally detaining and attacking him. Lt. Rivera climbed into the passenger side of the car, tasered, beat and threatened to shoot Allan, and then shot him point blank in the chest. After Allan was shot, Officer Barrett yanked him from the car, exposing his genitals. Rather than covering Allan, the NYPD left him to bleed out in the street, cuffed and exposed.
Allan was a loving son, brother and father and a pillar of the Washington Heights Community
8 FACTS About the NYPD Murder of Allan Feliz
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Allan Feliz was unarmed when NYPD Lt. Jonathan Rivera shot him in the chest at close range.
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NYPD admitted being wrong when they stopped Allan for not wearing his seatbelt.
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NYPD created a crisis and by illegally detaining Allan, running his ID an attacking him.
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When Allan returned to his car, Officer Edward Barrett immediately began punching him.
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Lt. Rivera climbed into the passenger seat - on top of Allan's passenger - beat, tasered, threatened to kill, and then shot Allan.
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Barrett aggressively yanked Allan from the car, exposing his genitals.
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NYPD left Allan handcuffed and bleeding out in the street with his genitals exposed.
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Moments after killing Allan, Lt. Rivera explained: "My hand got tired."
ABOUT
The Campaign to Fire NYPD Lt. Jonathan Rivera
Allan Feliz's family has been fighting for accountability for Allan's murder through years of delays and obstruction by Attorney General Letitia James, the NYPD, and the Lieutenants Benevolent Association, the police union that represents Lt. Rivera. Thanks to the leadership of Allan's brother, Samy, and citywide organizing - in May 2023, the CCRB substantiated fireable charges against Lt. Rivera and a discipline trial was scheduled for Nov. 2024. Deputy Commissioner of Trials Rosemarie Maldonado found Rivera guilty and recommended he be fired in February 2025. After dragging her feet for another five months, Commissioner Jessica Tisch made the corrupt and despicable decision to overturn the guilty verdict, ignoring a wealth of evidence, including Rivera's trial testimony. However, Allan's family is not done fighting!
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Attorney General Letitia James took almost a year to investigate and decide not to charge any of the officers involved in Allan's death.
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The NYPD Force Investigation Division (FID) kept their investigation open for over two years, which stalled the CCRB investigation past the 18-month deadline for most discipline charges.
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The CCRB substantiated fireable charges against Lt. Rivera in May 2023. In Aug 2023, after the CCRB already substantiated charges, the Lieutenants Benevolent Association Union filed a “re-open request” with the CCRB, which was rejected. A “re-open request” is a tool for civilian complainants to use to re-open CCRB investigations when new evidence emerges.
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Around the same time, the Feliz family learned that the NYPD is considering taking the case away from the CCRB using provision 2 of the CCRB-NYPD memorandum of understanding.
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In Sept. 2023, dozens of city and state elected officials sent a letter to Mayor Adams and Commissioner Caban calling on them to leave the case against Lt. Rivera with the CCRB. In Dec. 2023 LatinoJusticePRLDEF, Center for Constitutional Rights and other organizations sent a similar letter. Neither the mayor or commissioner gave a substantive response to either.
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The NYPD refused to serve the substantiated charges to Lt. Rivera so that a discipline trial could be scheduled for over a year.
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Finally, after countless rallies and press conferences, thanks to the Feliz family’s tireless efforts, a discipline trial occurred on Feb. 12 and 13, 2024.
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On Oct. 29, 2024, 31 elected officials sent a letter to Mayor Adams and the NYPD Commissioner, calling on them to follow the CCRB's recommendation by swiftly firing Lt. Rivera after the trial has concluded. Neither responded.
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In Feb. 2025, news broke that Deputy Commissioner Maldonado, who oversaw the trial, has found Lt. Rivera guilty of excessive force and assault in the first degree and is recommending he be fired.
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In March 2025, 32 elected officials and 50 community organizations sent letters to Mayor Adams and Commissioner Tisch, calling on them to fire Rivera following Maldonado's verdict.
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In May, a group of mothers who have lost loved ones to police violence - including Mery Verdeja, mother of Allan Feliz, and Julie Aquino, mother of Allan's son Eli - wrote Commissioner Tisch a letter on Mother's Day demanding she fire Rivera. They each received a one line response. When Kilsi, Allan's stepdaughter sent a letter to Tisch for Father's Day, the NYPD did not respond at all.
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In July, Commissioner Tisch released a preliminary decision to overturn the guilty verdict. And in Aug., she ignored the evidence and the demands of Allan's family, community organizations, and elected officials and finalized this corrupt and shameful decision.
Over Five Years of NYPD Delays Through Two Mayors and Six NYPD Commissioners
#FireJonathanRivera Campaign Updates: Tisch's Decision
Late in the afternoon on July 3, 2025, just before a long holiday weekend, NYPD Commissioner Tisch issued a shameful and cowardly preliminary decision to overturn Maldonado's guilty verdict and let Rivera keep his badge and gun. Within hours, while the family still had not received any notification from the NYPD, news outlets were reporting as if the decision was final, and then NYPD uploaded the report to their website - a flagrant violation of the CCRB-NYPD memorandum of understanding.
Since Tisch's preliminary decision, the Feliz family has been joined by elected officials, advocates, community members, and the media to express their outrage at Tisch's decision and call on her to reverse course and fire Jonathan Rivera. On Friday, July 11, the CCRB called on the Commissioner to fire Rivera, shortly after the family and legal advocates presented a letter to Commissioner Tisch challenging the legality of her decision. On Aug. 15, Tisch ignored theses objections and the demands of Allan's family, community organizations, elected officials and New Yorkers and finalized her shameful, corrupt decision to let Rivera walk without facing any consequences. However, Allan's family is not done fighting!
#FireJonathanRivera Campaign Updates: Article 78 Lawsuit
On Thursday, October 16 - one day before the 6th anniversary of Allan’s death - Allan's family announced a landmark lawsuit against NYPD Commissioner Jessica Tisch for refusing to fire killer cop Lt. Jonathan Rivera, whom her deputy commissioner found guilty of excessive force and deemed not credible. The Article 78 lawsuit asks the court to overturn Commissioner Tisch’s final decision and to fire Lt. Rivera, citing her decision as arbitrary and capricious, contradicting the evidence and legal precedent, and an abuse of Tisch’s discretion and responsibility to discipline NYPD officers.
As the Feliz family pursues legal action, they are also calling for major changes to the discipline process for all victims and survivors of police violence by stripping disciplinary authority from the Police Commissioner. They are also calling on whoever becomes New York's next mayor to remove and replace Jessica Tisch as Commissioner.
![[Hellgate] Family of Allan Feliz Sues NYPD Commissioner Tisch for Refusing to Fire the Cop Who Killed Him](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/f8a96d_23db254c84104d43a6cecd00360c1aff~mv2.webp/v1/fill/w_1000,h_1000,al_c,q_30,blur_30,enc_avif,quality_auto/f8a96d_23db254c84104d43a6cecd00360c1aff~mv2.webp)
![[Hellgate] Family of Allan Feliz Sues NYPD Commissioner Tisch for Refusing to Fire the Cop Who Killed Him](https://static.wixstatic.com/media/f8a96d_23db254c84104d43a6cecd00360c1aff~mv2.webp/v1/fill/w_1184,h_1184,al_c,q_90,enc_avif,quality_auto/f8a96d_23db254c84104d43a6cecd00360c1aff~mv2.webp)
