For Immediate Release
Chinese American Community Members in More Than 40 Cities to Rally for Equal Justice for ex-NYPD Officer Peter Liang
Dallas, TX, February 19, 2016 -- On February 20,2016, more than 100,000 Chinese American community members in more than 40 major cities across the U.S. are forming a coalition to rally for equal justice of ex-NYPD officer Peter Liang. These cities include New York,Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Salt Lake City, Seattle, Denver, Houston,Dallas, Detroit, Chicago, Boston, Philadelphia, Washington D.C., Atlanta, andMiami, among others.
Twenty-eight-year old Peter Liang had been on the duty for only 18 months when he was assigned to conduct a vertical patrol of NYCHA's Louis H. Pink Houses, one of the most dangerous housing projects in Brooklyn. The two officers were patrolling the pitch-dark stairwell and Mr. Liang's gun accidentally discharged. The bullet ricocheted off the wall and struck Akai Gurley, an African American civilian who happened to have entered the stairwell about one floor below. Both officers were unaware of Mr. Gurley’s injury at first. Mr. Liang was in the eighth floor hallway, shocked by the accidental discharge and in tears. When the two officers finally arrived on the fifth floor and surprised to see an injured Mr. Gurley, Mr. Liang called for the dispatch. Unfortunately Mr. Gurley died later.
Mr. Liang was convicted of second-degree manslaughter on Feb. 11th, 2016 and may face a sentence of up to 15 years.
This coalition of Justice for Liang is saddened by the tragic loss of the life of an innocent civilian and expresses its condolences to Mr. Gurley’s family. The coalition strongly believes that it does not serve the best interest of justice to prosecute Mr. Liang for a tragic accident, and that Mr. Liang was subject to selective prosecution and that the trial was not fair. The coalition denounces the systemic covering up racial injustice with more racial injustice without addressing the real issue.
「We are deeply sorry for Mr. Gurley and his family. This is a tragedy for both families. We believe accountability is in order,」 said Jack Ouyang, the spokesperson of this coalition. He added, 「In the wake of so many unfortunate deaths of unarmed African American men in the hands of police recently, the tension between the police and African American communities nationwide has reached an unprecedented level. However, it does not serve the best interests of justice for the prosecutor to single out Mr. Liang.」
The coalition believes that Mr. Liang has been sacrificed as a scapegoat to divert the attention on the fundamental problems of NYPD. It is high time for NYPD to be held accountable and reform, and to show restraints and respect to all the communities. This coalition demands true justice for Mr. Liang and justice for all.
For more information, visit: http://justiceforliang.com/
Media Contact:Jack Ouyang, jack.ouyang@justiceforliang.com, (201)817-9981 Bin Xie, bxieus@gmail.com, (830)382-4943
Dallas Local Media Contact: txdfwca@gmail.com
Dallas Local Organizer:DFWCA Dallas/Fort Worth Chinese Alliance: http://chinesealliance.org/
Who is Liang?
Ex-NYPD Officer Peter Liang, who at a young age decided to become a police officer to protect the community in NYC, immigrated from Hongkong with his parents. His father is a restaurant worker and his mother is working in a clothing factory. He joined NYPD in 2013.
What Happened?
• On Nov. 20, 2014, Officer. Liang had been on the duty for only 18 months and was still within his 2-year probationary period when he and Shaun Landau was assigned to conduct a vertical patrol of NYCHA's Louis H. Pink Houses, one of the most dangerous housing projects in Brooklyn. The vertical patrol involved patrolling the stairwells, the most dangerous places in the projects.
• Officer Liang was not accompanied by an experienced partner, but by another rookie officer, Officer Shaun Landau.
• When Mr. Akai Gurley, a young African American, , entered the stairwell about one floor below the two officers, who were patrolling the pitch-dark stairwells, Mr. Liang's gun accidentally discharged and the bullet ricocheted off the wall. The bullet struck Mr. Gurley, who eventually died in in the hospital.
• NYDP subsequently conducted an internal investigation and determined the shooting to be an accident.
• As already noted by the media, the prosecutors took some very inconsistent positions in the case. They initially said they did not believe Officer Liang intended to kill Gurley, but later argued that he deliberately shot into the dark after hearing a loud noise.
• Mr. Liang was convicted of second-degree manslaughter on Feb. 11th, 2016. He may face a sentence of up to 15 years.
• On February 19, 2016, Mr. Thompson once again stated publicly that he does not believe that Peter Liang intentionally killed Akai Gurley and that they have never said that.」
Why Is the Conviction Wrong?
• Reason #1 for Liang’s conviction: he had the gun drawn and finger on the trigger.
Fact: NYPD’s policy on whether an officer should keep a weapon holstered on such patrols is purposely vague and the decision as to when to take a firearm out is left to the discretion of the officers. Given the multiple ambush attacks on police in similar buildings in the past, Officer Liang’s decision was not unreasonable or inconsistent with the NYPO’s policy under the circumstances.
• Reason #2 for Liang’s conviction: he didn’t perform CPR on Mr. Gurley after what happened.
Fact: Unaware of Mr. Gurley’s injury, Officer Liang and his partner Officer Landau were in the 8th floor hallway when Mr. Gurley’s girlfriend first started to perform CPR. Both officers also testified about the lack of proper CPR training from NYPD.
• Lies were 「leaked」 to the press that Officer Liang waited to call for help, was texting his union rep on his cell phone after he shot Mr. Gurley, or he did not follow orders from his supervisor while on duty. Though unfair, these lies successfully swayed the public to perceive Officer Peter Liang as someone who was heartless. They painted this rookie cop as a product of everything that is wrong with policing in our country. These misleading news reports and headlines simply added fuel to the fire for the many people looking for justice in the Eric Gardner and Michael Brown deaths and the unjust killing of African Americans around the country.
• According to the most recent news report, jury members don’t think it’s fair that Officer Liang’s partner, Police Officer Shaun Landau, was given immunity to testify against Liang. Even DA Ken Thompson stated that he did not believe Officer Liang intended to kill Mr. Gurley, but the events of the tragedy had already been tainted by the lies and public opinion swayed. That some elected officials were calling for an indictment even before the grand jury was assembled is an indication of how political this case had become.
What Are We Here For?
• We demand JUSTICE for Liang and equal JUSTICE for all. In the wake of so many unfortunate deaths of unarmed African American men in recent years, there is an increasing tension in police-community relations and a demand to solve such a social issue. However, Mr. Liang’s prosecution was politically motivated, not a legal necessity. His case typifies DA’s abuse of prosecutorial power, conducted in the current political environment.
• We, like Officer Liang, are deeply sorry for the loss of Mr. Gurley. Our thoughts and prayers are with Mr. Gurley’s family and loved ones. This is a tragedy for both families. We believe proper remedies lies in a civil court, not in a criminal court.
• We side with the African American communities at large. We object to a system that purports to address injustice created by some police shooting elsewhere by criminalizing a tragic accident here and by creating new injustice. We want to make a difference to police-community relations that affect everyone in this country.
• We demand accountability from NYPD for its irresponsible patrol assignments, poor training of officers, and lack of support for its probationary officers.
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