Caribbean lawmakers disappointed in Garnes no indictment ruling

By Caribbean Medical News Staff
We have all seen the video of the “take down” of teddy-bear like figure Eric Garnes who was pronounced dead on his way to hospital after being held in a chokehold for several seconds. He was overweight and may have had pre-existing cardiac issues but his death was ruled a homicide. More recently a 12 yr. old boy was shot by police when a 911 called revealed that a boy was in the park “pointing a gun at people”. That said, the caller told the dispatcher that the gun was likely fake but that information was not passed on by the dispatcher to the police patrolmen.
The various video images of the Garnes death outraged many across the US in a culture where there are numerous reports of police brutality. That said, Garnes had a history of arrests for petty crimes like the sale of loose cigarettes. Yet many said that if the video cannot convince a grand jury, there was no point asking for body cameras for all officers.
Now Caribbean legislators are equally outraged and disappointed that a Grand Jury on Staten Island would return a no indictment ruling in a situation where the pathologist ruled the death a “homicide”.
Grenadian American Council Member Jumaane D. Williams, said “there are no words to adequately describe how I feel tonight, but I’ve been vacillating between numbness and abject anger”.
A white police officer was implicated in the death of Eric Garner. That officer, Daniel Pantaleo used a choke hold (said to be banned by the NYPD for 20 years) to restrain Garner, a father of six last July and this non indictment comes a week after the non-indictment of Officer Darren Wilson who shot Michael Brown, 18 in August in Ferguson, Missouri. His body lay in the street for 4 ½ hours and his mother was barred from seeing his body. Fergusson erupted in riots with many businesses burning to the ground.
The roads and freeways in NY, Brooklyn Bridge and West Side Highways have been blocked by thousands of protestors chanting “Hands Up, Don’t Shoot” to identify with Michael Browne’s death and “I can’t Breathe” which are said to be the last words of Eric Garner when he was being restrained by several officers who wrestled him to the ground. In the video, taken by a civilian, the chokehold is visible and Mr. Garner can be heard saying he could not breathe until he said nothing more.
A chokehold essentially cuts off the airway and it was further discovered that Garner was an asthmatic. He was non-responsive on the scene.
Meanwhile American congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke said the decision “defies comprehension”. She represents the 9th Congressional District in Brooklyn, New York. Clarke also joined those asking for a US Justice Department investigation into the matter.
Equally disturbing to anyone in the medical field, is the amount of time that passed in the video before anyone on the force rendered any aid to the seemingly unconscious man regardless of his race. When the EMT arrived, the young lady in the video did not offer oxygen or change Mr. Garnes pronated position with his neck and head unsupported to support him. Again, the levels of EMT training in NY must also be taken into account. He died on his way to hospital.
“We will not accept the continued devaluation of the lives of men and women who are African-American,” Clarke told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC).
Various lawmakers who have origins in the Caribbean are outraged asking why nothing is changing while they are being asked to remain “peaceful”.
Haitian American New York State Assembly member-Elect Rodneyse Bichotte described the grand jury’s decision as “unsettling”.
“My heart and prayers are with the Garner family, Mr. Garner’s community, and the men and women who again are left wondering how our justice system works after today’s decision,” said Bichotte.
Attorney General Eric Holder (of Barbadian descent in the parish of St. Joseph) said that the country will review the recent non indictment of Eric Garnes and also promised a DOJ investigation into the Michael Browne death.
Bichotte said while many will want to protest the grand jury’s decision, “we owe it to our communities, our families and our children to make our voices heard in a constructive and peaceful manner.
“While we face a watershed moment of asking ourselves the unavoidable questions, when is enough, enough? When will we see real reform and real redress for the losses our communities have suffered, progress, as always, starts with an honest dialogue between our community and the NYPD,” she said.
Thousands of protestors also protested by laying in the streets to do “die-ins” alongside fake coffins which bore the names of those who died at the hands of white police officers. Moments of silence alongside the fake coffins were poignant according to observers. There have been at least 200 arrests up to press time.