Justice for

Eric Garner

What happened to Eric Garner?

On July 14, 2014, Eric Garner broke up a fight in Staten Island. Shortly after, NYPD officers approached and began to harass him. Within minutes, several NYPD officers killed unarmed Eric Garner, using force, choking him and refusing to intervene while he pleaded for his life, saying "I can't breathe" 11 times. At least 3 officers lied on official reports to cover up the incident and other misconduct surrounding the killing of Eric Garner and, yet, seven years later most of the officers responsible have not been held accountable by the de Blasio administration.

Gwen Carr, mother of Eric Garner at our action in partnership with Communities United for Police Reform.

Carr v. de Blasio

What is the Carr vs. de Blasio Judicial Inquiry?

The Judicial Inquiry named Carr vs. de Blasio began on Monday, October 25, 2021. This historic legal action was brought by Gwen Carr, mother of Eric Garner, along with Ellisha Flagg-Garner, Eric's sister; Constance Malcolm, the mother of Ramarley Graham; Loyda Colon, ED of the Justice Committee; Joo-Hyun Kang, ED of Communities United for Police Reform (CPR); and other representatives of CPR organizations. The Judicial Inquiry is an investigation conducted by the court into the murder of Eric Garner and the subsequent cover-up by the NYPD and de Blasio administration. The last time a judicial inquiry was brought in NYC was 100 years ago.

Here are just a few examples of NYPD officers and employees that engaged in misconduct that should have been fired seven years ago and still need to be for the safety of all New Yorkers.

NYPD Officer Justine D’Amico lied about being able to see Eric Garner make a cigarette sale from a distance of over 400 feet, almost the equivalent to a football field away. D'Amico said no force was used, fabricated felony charges against Eric after he was already dead, and didn’t file the required paperwork for the unconstitutional stop.

Lt. Christopher Bannon racially profiled Black people standing on a block by calling armed NYPD officers to investigate even though he said they were not committing a crime. NYPD Officer Bannon also texted "not a big deal" when he was told that Eric Garner may be dead.

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NYPD Officer Mark Ramos was present when NYPD officers piled on top of Eric Garner. Officer Ramos saw officer D'Amico push Eric’s head down into the ground and former NYPD Officer Daniel Pantaleo use a NYPD-banned chokehold on him until he lost consciousness and did nothing. Officer Ramos said he heard Eric Garner say he couldn’t breathe. Officer Ramos testified that he didn't call for an ambulance nor did he hear any officers call for an ambulance. Officer Ramos didn't take any action to give medical aid, instead he told EMT's that Eric may be playing possum and faking it.

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Sgt. Dhanan Saminath was the supervising patrol sergeant the day of Eric's murder. Sgt. Saminath played down the need for an ambulance, saying Eric was "just having difficulties breathing". The ambulance was then tagged a low priority.

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Sgt. Kizzy Adonis didn't do anything at all. She stopped by, hung out a little, then got back in her car and left.

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Deputy Commissioner Joe Reznick chose not to fully investigate or discipline any of the officers for a wide range of misconduct even after the CCRB referred officers to IAB for investigation. Reznick ignored Officer D'Amico's misconduct and lies even though they were highlighted in the trial judge's report resulting from the Pantaleo administrative trial.

Former NYPD Officer Craig Furlani - who was allowed to retire without discipline) - testified that he heard Eric Garner say he couldn't breathe but ignored it and prioritized handcuffing him instead. 

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