Liang, 28, was charged with second-degree manslaughter, second-degree assault, second-degree reckless endangerment, criminally negligent homicide and one count of official misconduct, stemming from not administering CPR to Gurley.
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Shortly after the verdict was announced Thursday, Liang was sacked, a spokesman for the New York City Police Department said.
“Nobody deserved to die like Akai did, and no verdict in this world can heal our heartache or pain in losing Akai”, the statement said. And in a case that set off protests and widespread condemnation, three detectives were found not guilty of all charges in 2008 after a nonjury trial in the death of Sean Bell, 23, who was killed on his wedding day in Queens by police gunfire.
Akai Gurley was planning to drive to Jacksonville to see his mother when he was gunned down November 21, 2014, in a darkened public housing unit stairway in Brooklyn’s East New York neighborhood.
Liang was found guilty of the most serious charge, and according to the Washington Post was sacked from the department.
Only being on the force for about a year, Liang’s own partner testified against him. Prosecutors established that Liang was not under any threat that should have caused him to place his finger on the trigger of his gun and fire it, the press release states.
Mr.de Blasio said he would not heed such calls, but he also dismissed claims from police unions like Mr. Lynch’s that Mr. Liang’s conviction would scare cops off from doing their jobs rigorously.
Liang says he was patrolling a housing project with his gun drawn when he was surprised by a noise and accidentally fired.
Shaun Landau, his partner, who testified at trial under an immunity agreement, said Liang broke down in tears after realizing he had shot someone.
“No one is here rejoicing at the fact that this officer was convicted, but the message was sent, that if a police officer does something wrong their actions will be held accountable and will be held accountable in a court of law.”
Liang, who is Asian American, is scheduled to be sentenced on April 14. Liang’s case is a rare instance in which an officer is convicted of killing someone in the line of duty. They also said that after the shot rang out, neither Liang nor Landau called it in to supervisors, even though both had working radios and cellphones.
Gurley was 28 years old, and leaves behind a young daughter.
Peter Liang is led from the court room at the Brooklyn Supreme court after being convicted of manslaughter and official misconduct. The gunman later killed himself.
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Liang faces up to 15 years in prison when he is sentenced later this year. Jurors in Baltimore couldn’t agree on a verdict for an officer accused of manslaughter in the death of 25-year-old Freddie Gray, who suffered a fatal injury while riding in the back of a police van.
