On Friday, it will have been a year since Eric Garner died at the hands of police. Mayor de Blasio says he mourns the Staten Island father's death, but the anniversary is a fraught moment for City Hall. NY1’s Grace Rauh filed the following report.
The death of Eric Garner, who was wrestled to the ground by police and died from an apparent chokehold, was a turning point for Mayor de Blasio. Just seven months into his mayoralty, his police reform promises were put to the test.
“Obviously the anniversary is on my mind,” de Blasio said. “It's on the mind of many New Yorkers, and we mourn the death of Eric Garner.”
Garner's death put the mayor in a tough spot. His initial attempts to heal New York backfired when he gave Al Sharpton a soapbox at City Hall.
“If Dante wasn't your son, he'd be a candidate for a chokehold,” Sharpton told the mayor last July.
Protestors filled the streets after a grand jury refused to indict any officers. In addition, the mayor further inflamed his relationship with police by saying he had to teach his own son how to safely interact with cops. Angry officers turned their backs on de Blasio in a remarkable open revolt.
“I think we've come a long way even in the last year in terms of bringing police and community together,” de Blasio said.
The friction between the mayor and police has subsided, but the threat of it resurfacing seems to loom.
Meanwhile, police reform advocates, who say the administration has not done nearly enough to hold officers accountable for Garner’s death, are still pressuring the mayor.
The whole police force is being retrained,” de Blasio said. “We are moving forward on body cameras. The number of unconstitutional and other stops is obviously greatly, greatly reduced.”
The mayor recently agreed to hire 1,300 new police officers, who will focus on neighborhood policing.
“What's going to happen in the next few years is that community residents will get to know their officers personally and vice versa,” he said.
In the meantime, the mayor will have to get through the anniversary of Garner's death. It is a reminder of the difficultly he has had navigating his relationship with police and with the police reformers who helped put him in office.