Holder to open federal civil rights investigation into chokehold death in NYC

Holder to open federal civil rights investigation into chokehold death in NYC

Staten Island grand jury declined to bring charges in the case of Eric Garner, an African-American man who died this summer after a white New York City police officer placed him in an apparent chokehold during an arrest. Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. will announce Wednesday evening that he is opening a federal civil rights investigation into Garner’s death, a move that Garner’s family and activists have called for for months. The Staten Island decision follows a similar finding by a grand jury in Missouri in the case of Michael Brown, which prompted days of demonstrations in scores of cities around the country. New York authorities have braced for days for similar unrest following the decision in Staten Island, emphasizing their intention to allow peaceful protest.

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