In response to Mayor de Blasio’s offer to meet with the mother of Eric Garner, the Justice Committee released the following statements from Victoria Davis, sister of Delrawn Small, and Hawa Bah, mother of Mohamed Bah:
Statement from Victoria Davis, sister of Delrawn Small: “Mayor de Blasio met with Eric Garner's mother yesterday because he wants political gain, not because he's committed to holding Pantaleo or any of the other officers involved in Garner's murder accountable. When it doesn't suit his purposes, he turns his backs on families who've lost loved ones to the police.
De Blasio was Mayor when my brother was murdered by NYPD Officer Wayne Isaacs in front of his four-month-old son. In the last three years my family never received condolences from de Blasio and also, he has completely ignored my request for a meeting. The officer that killed my brother was prosecuted for murder by the Attorney General and repeatedly lied about it, but de Blasio's NYPD refuses to even bring disciplinary charges against him. Wayne Isaacs is still on the force collecting overtime and padding his pension. My brother is dead and the Mayor continues to play opportunistic politics. I stand with Mrs. Carr in her demand that de Blasio fire all officers involved in Garner's murder and he must fire Isaacs too."
Statement from Hawa Bah, mother of Mohamed Bah: "My son, Mohamed Bah, was murdered in his own home by NYPD officers on Sept. 25, 2012. In Nov. 2017, New York jury found NYPD Officer Edwin Mateo liable for using excessive force when murdering my son, but de Blasio forced me and my family through another year and a half of suffering by appealing the verdict. I asked for a meeting with de Blasio many times, including hand-delivering a letter on Aug. 1, 2018, so I could hear from him face to face why he was causing my family so much pain. He never responded. It was only due to rallies, letters, phone calls, and other protests that we finally go the de Blasio administration to drop the appeal and settle the case, but de Blasio never gave me the respect of granting my many requests for a meeting because my son wasn't a famous tennis player and his murder wasn't broadcast across the world."
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