Eric Garner’s Chokehold Death Ruled Homicide By Medical Examiner

Eric Garner’s death at the hands of a New York City police officer was ruled a homicide by the city’s Medical Examiner’s office Friday. The office ruled that Garner’s death was caused by compression of neck and chest with asthma, heart disease, and obesity listed as contributing factors.

Garner, 43, died on July 17 during an arrest in Staten Island where he was put in an apparent chokehold by the police officer. CBS News reports that video of the arrest shot by a bystander shows a NYPD officer wrap his arm around Garner’s neck as he is taken to the ground. In the video, Garner shouts, “I can’t breathe.”

Following Garner’s death, two officers were placed on desk duty and four emergency workers involved in the medical response for Garner were suspended without pay pending the investigation. Authorities said Garner likely had a heart attack. However, the medical examiner’s report says otherwise.

Medical examiner spokeswoman Julie Bolcer told the Washington Post that Eric Garner died because of a chokehold, “Compression of chest and prone position during physical restraint by police.”

Garner’s widow, Esaw Garner, was pleased with the announcement, telling the New York Daily News, “Thank God the truth is finally out. Thank God for that.”

The Staten Island District Attorney’s office released a statement about the chokehold death saying, “We await the issuance of the official death certificate and the autopsy report. The investigation into Mr. Garner’s death continues.”

A criminal investigation was already launched by the district attorney’s office and the Internal Affairs Bureau started an internal police investigation after Eric Garner’s death. New York City Police Commissioner Bill Bratton said in a previous statement that the FBI and the U.S. Attorney’s Office will likely launch federal investigations into the death.

The New York Police Department banned chokeholds as a means of subduing a suspect in 1994 after a Bronx man named Anthony Baez was killed by an officer who placed him in one. However, the tactic has been at the heart of more than 1,000 complaints to the city’s Civilian Complaint Review Board in the past five years. State law doesn’t ban it.

New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio released a statement Friday after the medical examiner’s report, saying, “On behalf of all New Yorkers, I extend my deepest sympathies to the family of Eric Garner.”

It isn’t yet clear if the district attorney’s office will file charges against the officer responsible for Eric Garner’s chokehold death.

[Image: New York Daily News]