Queens reacts to NYPD fi ring of Pantaleo
BY BILL PARRY
Five years after the death
of Eric Garner, NYPD Police
Commissioner James O’Neill
fired police officer Daniel
Pantaleo and stripped him
of his pension for violating
the department’s ban
on chokeholds.
“It is clear Daniel Pantaleo
can no longer serve as a New
York City police officer,” O’Neill
said at One Police Plaza Monday.
“This is not an easy decision;
I’ve been thinking about
this day since the day I was
sworn in.”
Two weeks ago an internal
disciplinary trial determined
that Pantaleo employed the
illegal chokehold on Garner, who
died on July 17, 2014. Under the
City Charter and state law, the
decision to terminate Pantaleo
belonged to the commissioner,
who spent 34 years as a
street cop.
“If I was still a cop, I would
probably be mad at me,”
O’Neill admitted. “Some will
be angry … but we all have
to work through this, we’re a
resilient organization.”
Bayside resident Patrick
Lynch, the president of the
Police Benevolent Association,
was furious with the decision.
Protesters rallying against a grand jury’s decision not to indict the
police officer involved in the death of Eric Garner marched around
Manhattan for hours on Dec. 3, 2014, before heading over the
Brooklyn Bridge. AP Photo via Brooklyn Paper
“Police Commissioner
O’Neill has made his choice: he
has chosen politics and his own
self-interest over the police he
claims to lead,” Lynch fumed.
“He has chosen to cringe in fear
of the anti-police extremists,
rather than standing up for New
Yorkers who want a functioning
police department, with cops
who are empowered to protect
them and their families.”
It was Garner’s dying words
“I can’t breathe” that helped fuel
the rise of the Black Lives Matter
movement across the country.
Lynch said the commissioner
would discover that “anti-cop
haters” will still not be satisfied
while losing the Department’s
rank-and-file.
“The damage is already
done. The NYPD will remain
rudderless and frozen and the
commissioner will never be able
to bring it back,” Lynch said.
“We are urgings all New York
City police officers to proceed
with the utmost caution in this
new reality, in which they may
be deemed ‘reckless’ just for
doing their job.”
Around Queens, elected
officials such as Councilman
Rory Lancman, who was
endorsed by Garner’s mother
Gwen Carr in his failed bid
for Queens District Attorney,
wrote, “About time” on Twitter.
“A police officer who
recklessly used such devastating
force with such deadly
consequences has no business
in the NYPD,” he added.
After Lancman pulled out of
the race prior to the Democratic
primary, Carr switched her
endorsement to Tiffany Cabán,
the public defender from
Astoria who came in second
to Queens Borough President
Melinda Katz after a prolonged
vote count. Cabán tweeted that
the firing of Pantaleo was the
bare minimum that the Garner
family deserved.
“The work isn’t done either,”
Cabán wrote. “Every single
officer involved needs to be
held accountable.”
City Comptroller Scott
Stringer echoed that sentiment.
“Now I urge the
commissioner to finish the job
and terminate all the officers
who stood by and watched as
Eric Garner gasped for breath,”
he said. “As a city, we have to
use this moment to look in the
mirror and examine how we
ensure police accountability
and fairness under the law. No
public servant can be above
public scrutiny. Though today’s
decision is welcome, we still have
to address the systemic racism
and prejudice that undermines
our criminal justice system.”
In rendering his decision,
the commissioner said it was
his own and not a specific
directive from City Hall. Mayor
Bill de Blasio said he hoped the
decision would bring closure
for the Garner family and that
the police force has changed
since 2014.
“I know the NYPD of today
is a different institution than
it was just a few years ago,” he
said. “I know that the NYPD has
changed profoundly. I know the
members of the NYPD learned
the lesson of this tragedy.”
Off-duty NYPD offi cer takes own life in Laurelton
BY JENNA BAGCAL
The New York City Police
Department lost one of its own
on Wednesday after an off-duty
officer died by apparent suicide
in Laurelton, according to
multiple reports.
The New York Post first
reported that 56-year-old Robert
Echeverria’s wife found him
at home with a self-inflicted
gunshot wound just past 6 p.m.
on Aug. 14. Emergency response
personnel rushed Echeverria
to North Shore University
Hospital where he was
pronounced dead.
QNS reached out to police,
who have not yet confirmed
the veteran officer’s identity.
Reports said that he worked
for the NYPD’s Strategic
Response Team and had
been with the department for
25 years.
His death comes one day
after another 35-year-old
Officer Johnny Rios took his
life at his Yonkers home. Nine
police officers have died by
suicide this year. Earlier this
year, Deputy Chief Steven Silks
— a 38-year NYPD veteran —
killed himself in Forest Hills
days before his mandatory
retirement.
NYPD issued a message
on Twitter offering support
for fellow police officers: “The
NYPD suffered another tragedy
today with the loss of another
officer to suicide. To those who
may be facing struggles – Help
is always available, you are
not alone.”
“Tonight our city mourns
a tragedy. We won’t let anyone
struggle alone. I want every one
of New York’s Finest to know we
are here for you. We value you.
Help is available. Please reach
out,” said Mayor de Blasio in a
Tweet on Wednesday evening.
Police Commissioner James
O’Neil said that more needs to
be done to protect police officer
mental health following trauma
they face on the job.
“Many in the criminaljustice
reform movement call for
cops & prosecutors to do more
Photo credit: Adobe Photo Stock
to take account of the trauma
experienced by suspects. It’s
time for NYers — who reap the
benefits of a once-unfathomable
crime decline — to do the same
for our police,” O’Neill said
on Twitter.
In July, the NYPD launched
a suicide prevention task
force with peer teams who
started visiting each precinct.
O’Neil said that 800 NYPD
staff members will begin
retraining in August with
mental health, stress and
suicide experts.
On Thursday, Attorney
General Letitia James issued
the following statement about
Echevarria’s death:
“For the ninth time this
year, we are struggling with
the loss of another member
of the NYPD. Officer Robert
Echeverria was a 25-year
veteran of the NYPD, a man who
dedicated his career to ensuring
the safety and wellbeing of New
Yorkers. While we mourn the
death of Officer Echeverria
and the eight other members
of the NYPD who have taken
their lives, we must confront
the real mental health crisis
we are facing. I am committed
to working with the NYPD and
mental health organizations to
ensure that the men and women
of the NYPD have access to
the resources and support
they need.”
The NYPD provided a list
of resources police officers can
use. Law enforcement can text
BLUE to 741741, and non-law
enforcement can text TALK
to the same number. Support
is also available at nyc.gov/
nycwell.
For NYPD-specific help, call
the Employee Assistance Unit
at 646-610-6730, the Chaplains
Unit at 212-473-2363 or POPPA
at 888-267-7267.
If you or someone you know
is struggling with mental
health, call the National Suicide
Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-
8255. The network provides free
emotional support for people
in suicidal crisis or emotional
distress. Individuals can call 24
hours a day, seven days a week.
TIMESLEDGER,4 AUG. 23-29, 2019 QNS.COM
/nyc.gov
/QNS.COM
