As in all cases where blacks die at the hands of the police, Al Sharpton is quick to take advantage of such publicity evoking incidents
In the blink of an eye, Rev. Al Sharpton shows up to demand justice for Eric Garner who died while resisting arrest. But can charlatan Sharpton answer this question: How do the cops subdue a man resisting arrest who weighs between 350 and 400 pounds?
Public records show Eric Garner was out on $4,000 bond or $2,000 cash bail for three criminal cases, all involving charges of possession and sale of untaxed cigarettes, from arrests in May, March and last August. In the August case, police also charged him with aggravated unlicensed operation of a vehicle, false personation and marijuana possession. But the Rev. Lloyd Land, of the First United Christian Church, described Garner as a "gentle giant" and said, "This guy was nobody's drug dealer. He doesn't drink liquor. He doesn't do drugs. What he does is he sells cigarettes. He sells cigarettes, 50 cents a piece. That's how he makes a living."
NYPD has banned the use of chokeholds. With Sandinista-loving Mayor De Blasio’s vow to change NYPD, the officer who administered the chokehold is toast. He’ll not only be canned, but you can expect him to face criminal charges in the death of Garner. The other officers taking part in the arrest are likely to face suspensions.
CHOKEHOLD DEATH WILL TEST DE BLASIO’S VOW TO CHANGE NYPD, MAYOR’S ALLIES SAY
By Matthew Chayes
Newsday
July 19, 2014
Allies of Bill de Blasio said Saturday that a man's death after an officer used a banned chokehold would show whether the mayor can deliver on campaign rhetoric to change the NYPD.
The police department is under fire after an amateur video showed officers attempting to arrest Eric Garner, 43, of Staten Island on Thursday on suspicion of selling untaxed cigarettes.
De Blasio, who rode to electoral victory on a wave of deep dissatisfaction in black and Latino communities about their treatment by police, called the video "very troubling." It shows an officer coming from behind to put Garner in a chokehold banned years ago by the NYPD, and Garner's head being slammed to the pavement. He is heard repeatedly whimpering, "I can't breathe."
Garner was adamant that he did not want to be arrested.
"Let me tell you. This is going to be a real test to see where policies are in the city now, and whether the change that we feel has occurred, has occurred," said the Rev. Al Sharpton, who led rallies Saturday at his Harlem headquarters and on Staten Island.
Said Public Advocate Letitia James: "This case will test our mettle as a city -- and as progressives."
De Blasio, who postponed his family vacation to Italy one day to deal with the uproar, spoke by telephone with Garner's widow, Esaw Garner, and mother, Gwen Carr, Saturday, said mayoral spokeswoman Marti Adams.
"He reassured the family that the city is doing everything possible to ensure a full and thorough investigation," Adams said.
"The issue is not whether one was selling cigarettes," Sharpton said. "The issue was how an unarmed man was subjected to a chokehold and the result is he is no longer with us."
As Sharpton spoke, Esaw Garner's knees buckled and Sharpton helped support her. She and Carr, also visibly distraught, had to be led away.
Garner's funeral is to be held at 7 p.m. Wednesday at Bethel Baptist Church, on Bergen Street, in Brooklyn.
De Blasio and NYPD Commissioner William Bratton said that a final determination of any breaking of the law would be made after an investigation by the Staten Island district attorney. But Saturday, Sharpton suggested that undue influence by the police union could undermine an investigation. "I have very serious questions," Sharpton said.
Douglas Auer, a spokesman sent a statement from Staten Island District Attorney Daniel Donovan: "My office is working along with the NYPD to do a complete and thorough investigation into the circumstances surrounding Mr. Garner's death."
The NYPD Saturday identified Daniel Pantaleo as the officer who put Garner in the chokehold and said he had been placed on desk duty. The Patrolmen's Benevolent Association blasted the move as "a completely unwarranted, knee-jerk reaction for political reasons and nothing more."
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