It is a painful Mother's Day weekend for parents whose children were killed by police, as the moms are continuing to cry out for answers that they say they have not gotten so far. NY1's Dean Meminger filed the following report.
Unarmed 18-year-old Ramarley Graham was shot and killed by police officer Richard Haste inside the teen's Bronx home in 2012. The officer was not indicted.
On Friday, other mothers whose sons were killed by NYPD officers gathered for a Mother's Day Rally urging the Department of Justice to take action in the case.
Community organizers said a federal investigation won’t bring Ramarley back, but it will send a clear message. “That the lives of our children, that the lives of black and brown children, are valued,” said Yul-san Liem, co-director of the Justice Committee.
It’s a message that Kadiatou Diallo says must be heard. Her son, Amadou, was shot 19 times in a hail of 41 police bullets while he innocently stood in his Bronx doorway in 1999.
“We need justice, and we want to move forward,” Kadiatou Diallo said. “We want to help contribute to society, to bring positive changes. Not only to bash the NYPD, but to condemn the cops that are doing wrong.”
Along with Ms. Diallo, Iris Baez is a mother in pain for 20 years, but still lends her voice to the issue. Her son, Anthony, died after being put in an illegal chokehold by police officer Francis Livoti, who did serve time, six-and-a-half years. In the Graham case, she said, “We need some investigation, but real investigation. Not a Mickey Mouse investigation.”
In the Graham case, she said, "We need some investigation, but real investigation. Not a Mickey Mouse investigation."
As part of that, there is a demand for the newly appointed NYPD inspector general to look at all of the cases.
Police Commissioner William Bratton said he understands the mothers' pain, but said many times, the officers did not act criminally.
"I'm very comfortable that all of those cases are exhaustively investigated by us, by the appropriate district attorneys' offices," Bratton said.
The city said the inspector general officially starts at the end of the month. There's a good chance he will be getting a visit from some of these parents.
by Dean Meminger
Originally reported by NY1