Special to the AmNews
The aftermath of a killer cop’s conviction in Brooklyn’s State Supreme Court a couple weeks ago has caused some debate about NYPD training, as well as accountability, when they don’t adhere to departmental procedures.
The rare conviction of a cop for killing an unarmed Black man attracted several thousand to a rally in Brooklyn’s Cadman Plaza Park in DUMBO Saturday afternoon, an overwhelming majority appearing to be Asians. They denounced the jury’s Feb. 11 conviction of Peter Liang on second-degree manslaughter charges, as well as his subsequent firing from the NYPD later that same day.
Similar demonstrations were conducted simultaneously in various cities nationwide.
Some chanted, “Don’t be a scapegoat,” referencing claims that Liang is a fall guy for a police department with a horrid history of committing atrocities with impunity.
“The NYPD has been getting flak for the recent killings of numerous unarmed [Black men], and in order for them to clean up their image, Liang was sacrificed,” claims an NYPD source, speaking on the condition of anonymity. “The PBA is about projecting the best possible image to the public. He was a rookie and expendable.”
“Probably,” the source responded when asked if the conviction was collateral damage for Eric Garner’s killing by police July 17, 2014, on Staten Island. “Once one guy messes up, the department looks to clean up their name.”
Saturday’s rally in Brooklyn was paralleled by counter-protests.
“Fifteen years!” Akai Gurley supporters shouted, obviously referring to Liang’s maximum sentence, which Judge Danny Chun could impose on April 14.
“We’re trained in the academy [as rookies] not to pull out our guns unless we’re in danger and ready to shoot,” the source said of Liang’s testifying that he had “his gun in hand.” “He violated his training.”
Referring to Liang’s claims that he was “startled by a sound” that caused him to “tense up” and discharge his weapon, the source added, “He should’ve chosen another job if he was going to be scared. He knew what he signed up for.”
Liang claimed that his finger was on the gun’s side and not on the trigger.
The source disputes this claim: “Had he followed his training, [the shooting] never would’ve happened.”
Liang’s supporters want the conviction “overturned,” saying the shooting was an accident and that the Chinese-American cop was discriminated against because of his ethnicity.
Ken Thompson, Brooklyn’s first African-American district attorney, whose mother is a retired NYPD officer, denied that politics played a part in bringing charges against Liang.
“While we know that Peter Liang did not intend to kill Akai Gurley, he was convicted because his reckless actions cost an innocent man his life,” Thompson explained. “This case is about what happened in Brooklyn, not Ferguson or Staten Island, and the jury convicted on the basis of these unique and tragic facts. My office will continue to pursue equal justice for all of Brooklyn.”
Liang’s attorneys said they will appeal the conviction if Chun does not grant a motion to set aside the guilty verdict.
Prosecutors contend that the then-rookie cop had “recklessly discharged his service pistol into a dimly lit stairwell” of the Pink Houses in East New York, Brooklyn the night of Nov. 20, 2014, which then struck and killed Gurley as he took the stairs one floor below the cop and his partner.