Justice Department Fails to File Charges in Eric Garner’s Case

For many the shenanigans from the White House and the tweets about the four Congresswomen of color going “back where they came from” were superseded today by the Justice Department’s decision not to file federal charges against the New York City police officer who used an apparent chokehold on Eric Garner as Garner repeatedly said, “I can’t breathe.”

The announcement came one day before the five-year anniversary of Garner’s death . Attorney General William Barr made the decision not to file charges, following Brooklyn prosecutors’ recommendations.

Social media ignited with rebukes for the justice system’s failure to file civil or criminal charges against Danny Panteleo who was seen in the video with his arm around Garner’s neck. Garner, who was asthmatic, was allegedly selling untaxed, loose cigarettes outside a store when Panteleo used what most considered a chokehold which is prohibited by the NYPD. The Coroner’s office ruled Garner’s death a homicide.

Many on social media expressed little surprise at DOJ’s decision. “I know they [the family] are tired of no justice from the legal system,” wrote Alfred Long, Jr. on Facebook.

Supporting the Garner Family

Long met Eric Garner’s wife, Esaw, when she traveled to St. Louis to support the family of Michael Brown, the Ferguson, Missouri teenager shot and killed by a police officer less than a month after Garner was killed. It was, in part, the timing of the two police-involved deaths that set off weeks of civil unrest in Ferguson and around the country.

“When our city was in turmoil over the murder of Mike Brown, the families, friends, and supporters of other victims of police brutality, homicide and injustice would come here for events and to participate in marches, meetings, rallies, etc.,” Long said. “The first time Mrs. Garner and family/friends came to St. Louis I was responsible for them, to an extent.”

During those long weeks of unrest, Long said he spent time on the “front line.”

“Their love for Eric was painfully evident,” he remarked. “The fact that the families and loved ones had to endure their loss in front of and with the world was difficult, however, it created bonds nationwide.”

In late 2017 Erica Garner, one of Garner’s daughters, passed away from complications after she suffered a heart attack. She had become an ardent advocate for justice in her father’s case. Today Emerald Garner, her sister, assumed the mantle as she protested the Justice Department’s decision.