Eric Garner

Case background and investigation

On July 17, 2014, Eric Garner, a 43-year-old Black man, died in the Tompkinsville neighborhood of Staten Island, New York, during an encounter with the New York City Police Department. Officers had approached Garner on suspicion of selling untaxed loose cigarettes. As officers moved to arrest him, Officer Daniel Pantaleo placed his arm around Garner's neck and pulled him to the ground, where several officers restrained him. Bystander video, which circulated widely, recorded Garner repeatedly saying 'I can't breathe' while held face down on the sidewalk; the phrase became a rallying cry for subsequent protests against police use of force. Garner lost consciousness and was pronounced dead at a hospital.

On August 1, 2014, the New York City Office of the Chief Medical Examiner ruled the death a homicide, attributing it to 'compression of neck, compression of chest and prone positioning during physical restraint by police,' with acute and chronic bronchial asthma, obesity, and hypertensive cardiovascular disease listed as contributing conditions. The maneuver Pantaleo used was described by the medical examiner and later officials as a chokehold, a tactic prohibited by NYPD patrol guidelines. Pantaleo and other officers disputed characterizations of the hold and maintained the restraint was a permissible takedown technique.

A Richmond County (Staten Island) grand jury heard evidence beginning in September 2014, and on December 3, 2014, it voted not to indict Pantaleo on any state criminal charge, finding insufficient legal basis to proceed. The decision, coming shortly after a grand jury in Ferguson, Missouri declined to indict an officer in the death of Michael Brown, prompted large demonstrations in New York City and nationally. The U.S. Department of Justice announced a federal civil rights investigation the same day.

The federal inquiry continued for nearly five years. On July 16, 2019 -- one day before the statute of limitations was set to expire -- the Justice Department announced it would not bring federal civil rights charges against Pantaleo. U.S. Attorney Richard Donoghue said the evidence did not establish beyond a reasonable doubt that Pantaleo 'willfully' violated Garner's civil rights; reporting indicated Attorney General William Barr made the final decision, overruling attorneys in the Civil Rights Division who had favored prosecution. Separately, the NYPD held an internal administrative disciplinary trial. Administrative Law Judge Rosemarie Maldonado found that Pantaleo had used a banned chokehold and recommended his dismissal. On August 19, 2019, Police Commissioner James O'Neill fired Pantaleo, more than five years after Garner's death.

No criminal charges were ever filed against Pantaleo or any other officer in connection with Garner's death; the grand jury declined to indict at the state level, and federal prosecutors declined to charge. Pantaleo's removal was an administrative employment action following an NYPD disciplinary proceeding, not a criminal conviction. In July 2015, New York City settled a wrongful-death claim with Garner's family for $5.9 million without admitting liability. In June 2020, amid nationwide protests over the death of George Floyd, New York enacted the Eric Garner Anti-Chokehold Act, making it a felony for police to use chokeholds or similar restraints that cause injury or death. The case remains widely cited in debates over policing, accountability, and use of force.