Kawaski Trawick’s mom wants justice
Responded to a new DA report and demanded NYPD offi cers get fi red
BY JASON COHEN
A report released on Nov. 17 by District
Attorney Darcel Clark cleared
NYPD offi cers of any wrongdoing in
the 2019 death of Kawaski Trawick. In
August, Clark announced she would
not seek to indict offi cers for the killing
of the Bronx resident.
His mother, Ellen Trawick, demanded
justice for her son and urged
Mayor de Blasio and the NYPD to fi re
the offi cers who were responsible.
“It’s crystal clear from the video
and the facts that NYPD Offi cers Brendan
Thompson and Herbert Davis
unnecessarily killed my son,” Ellen
Trawick said. “Kawaski was cooking
in his own apartment, not a threat to
anyone when Davis and Thompson
entered his home without permission
and immediately escalated the encounter
resulting in Kawaski’s death.
They refused to answer when my son
repeatedly asked them why they were
in his home.”
According to the offi cial report,
32-year-old Kawaski Trawick was
locked out of his Hill House apartment
on April 14, 2019. FDNY personnel let
Trawick back into his home and he had
already started cooking when NYPD
Offi cers Brendan Thompson and Herbert
Davis arrived at Hill House.
The report said that Trawick asked
the offi cers multiple times why they
were in his home and he explained
to them that he was “just cooking.”
Thompson and Davis allegedly refused
to answer Trawick’s questions,
yelled orders at him and tased
and killed him within minutes of
their arrival.
“If Thompson and Davis had
treated Kawaski like a human being,
he would be alive today. Because of
the failure of the Bronx DA to indict
these offi cers, I’m focused today on
fi ghting to make sure that Mayor de
Blasio and the NYPD fi re Thompson
and Davis because the way they killed
my son makes them a clear danger to
New Yorkers,” Ellen Trawick said.
The investigation allegedly showed
that responding offi cers were not
guilty of any criminality but it also
revealed that responding offi cers
lacked information that “would have
been helpful” when they encountered
Trawick at Hill House. The investigation
also showed that there was a
“gap in communication” with Hill
House, the nonprofi t supportive housing
facility on Grand Avenue where
Trawick lived.
BRONX TIMES R 22 EPORTER, DECEMBER 4-10, 2020 BTR
Following Trawick’s death, the
investigation found a need for “a
thoughtful review of police procedures
and training techniques” in
similar interactions.
“Once again, we have a death that
painfully illustrates that changes are
needed in the response to those in
mental health crisis, and that we as a
community must do better to provide
appropriate assistance for residents of
supportive housing in the City,” Clark
said. “There must be treatment and
services readily available to prevent
persons from reaching a point where
they may cause harm to themselves or
others. I continue to encourage a productive
conversation about how to better
approach calls to help people in crisis
to avoid an escalation resulting in
a fatality.”
Clark gave her condolences to Trawick’s
friends and family, who she
said “deserved a thorough, transparent
investigation” into his death. The
DA’s offi ce released the full report
and video footage from the offi cers’
body camera and also from building
surveillance cameras.
Royce Russell, the attorney for Trawick’s
family, said he could not believe
the cops were not charged and that the
city dragged its feet in announcing
its fi ndings.
“After more than a year and a half,
the District Attorney’s offi ce chose
not to indict in this case and has released
a biased report that has a slant
by way of omissions, which clouds the
air of transparency,” Russell said. “We
need the media and public to be critical
readers and thinkers when reviewing
this report, and to watch the video
in totality. Since the DA is not pursuing
this case further, I fully expect the
DA’s offi ce to act in good faith with humanity
being at the forefront of their
intentions — and the best way to do
that at this stage is through full transparency
and by releasing all relevant
documents and reports to the family of
Kawaski Trawick, so that this family
has the tools to seek accountability and
justice for the killing of Kawaski.”
Kawaski Trawick Photo via Slaters Funeral Home
Benedetto and Johnson
distribute turkey vouchers
Assemblyman Michael Benedetto and Monique Johnson distribute $20 Butterball Turkey
vouchers to residents at Throggs Neck Houses on Monday, Nov. 23. The vouchers were
provided by Morris Heights Health Center.