A Staten Island dad died Thursday after being put in a chokehold and having his head slammed against a sidewalk by NYPD police officers.
Eric Garner, 43, was an asthmatic man from Staten Island who was breaking up a fight when police approached him about selling untaxed cigarettes. Shortly thereafter, the struggle between Garner and the police began.
“I can’t breathe! I can’t breathe!” screams Garner in the video recorded by a spectator.
The footage goes on to show five police officers attempting to take the father of six down to the ground.
After he stopped struggling, officers left Garner on the pavement unconscious while they called paramedics. Soon after, he went into cardiac arrest and died.
In addition to his wife and six children, Garner leaves behind two grandchildren. “When I kissed my husband this morning, I never thought it would be for the last time,” Garner’s wife, Esaw, told the New York Daily News.
Since the incident, Mayor Bill de Blasio and NYPD Internal Affairs have promised a full investigation into the circumstances.
“We have a responsibility to keep every New Yorker safe, and that includes when individuals are in custody of the NYPD,” said de Blasio in a statement.
See the video and read the full story here.
