A day after thousands marched on Staten Island in support of Eric Garner, the borough’s district attorney spoke out about the case.
Speaking on The Cats Roundtable Sunday morning, District Attorney Daniel Donovan said police have a responsibility to enforce the law.
Donovan also said he has allocated more resources to this case than any other during his tenure.
“There’s mechanisms in place that we’ll use to find out the truth,” Donovan said. “John, since this incident happened, I’ve said I have to collect the dots before I could connect the dots. And I’ve told the world that I didn’t create the truth, but my job is to find out what it is.”
Donovan said a grand jury will be convened next month and will then begin hearing testimony in the case.
Garner died on July 17 when an officer who was trying to arrest him for illegally selling loose cigarettes put him in a chokehold.
His death has sparked many questions about police tactics, including officers’ pursuits of low-level crimes.
Garner’s family and community leaders are calling for federal prosecutors to get involved.
A local criminal justice expert also weighed in on the Garner case and issues facing the NYPD in general.
John Jay College Professor Maki Haberfeld said the department focuses on diversity in recruiting, but should look for candidates who are empathetic and can communicate well.
She also said while NYPD recruits undergo about 28 weeks of training, among the longest in the country, that isn’t nearly enough.
“When you look at countries like Sweden or Norway, they train their police officers for over two years, and they graduate with a degree in police science,” Haberfield said. “And this is something, you know, that I think would change drastically and dramatically the dynamic we have here between the police and the public.”
Haberfeld said we live in an era of accountability for police, but more cases like Garner’s could arise.
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