Federal Grand Jury Said To Begin Hearing Evidence In Eric Garner Case

Officers approached Garner that day after the deli owner complained that he was allegedly selling untaxed cigarettes.

In the video, Erica Garner explains her support for Sanders saying, “I believe that Bernie Sanders is a protester”, her account, told at times straight to camera or over images of her protesting, interspersed with Sanders talking about criminal justice reform at campaign events.

A grand jury is hearing evidence as part of federal civil rights investigation into the death of an unarmed black man who was placed in a chokehold by a white police officer, an official familiar with the investigation said Thursday.

Two officers who were on the scene when Garner died were interviewed by the grand jury, according to the report.

If you remember, a NY grand jury declined to bring charges against Garner back in December.

The decision led to rallies across the city, adding to nationwide tensions over the treatment of minorities by police.

The empaneling of a federal grand jury, which was first reported by The New York Daily News and confirmed by others, is a significant step, signaling that prosecutors are taking the matter seriously and an officer or officers could be charged.

The federal grand jury is convening more than a year after Pantaleo escaped prosecution by a grand jury at the state level.

The city agreed to pay Garner’s family $5.9 million last July to settle a wrongful death claim. Seconds later, a video shows an officer behind Garner grab him and pull him to the sidewalk, rolling him onto his stomach.

Spokeswomen for the Justice Department and the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of NY declined to comment for this story.

Jonathan Moore, a lawyer for the family, said he was aware of reports that a grand jury had begun reviewing evidence in the case but could not confirm them.

Federal investigators, though, sometimes use the grand jury process merely to further their investigations, and it is far from certain any charges would be returned.

“[The officers] deserve to be prosecuted”.