USANews版 - STATEMENT OF ASSEMBLYMAN WILLIAM REGARDING PETER LIANG AND DA'S ATATEMENT |
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发帖数: 1112 | 1 STATEMENT OF ASSEMBLYMAN WILLIAM COLTON (D, WFP, 47 A.D. KINGS) ON THE
RECOMMENDATIONS OF THE KINGS COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY ON THE SENTENCING OF
PETER LIANG
While the Press Release issued by the Kings County District Attorney, at
least does not compound the injustice done to Peter Liang by recommending
jail time, nonetheless it fails to correct the injustice created by the
conviction of Peter Liang for manslaughter.
I am pleased to see that the statement of the District Attorney contradicts
the closing statement made by its prosecuting attorney in the case who told
the jury that the defendant was somehow aware that a person was in the
stairwell and turned and pointed his gun intentionally shooting at the
victim. This gross misstatement was not based on any facts or evidence
presented in the case and should have resulted in the granting of the
Defense Attorney’s motion for a mistrial.
A sentencing recommendation of five years probation, with six months of
home confinement and 500 hundred hours of community service leaves Peter
Liang, marked as a convicted felon.
Never before has a defendant been convicted of manslaughter based upon such
a lack of law or facts to justify such a conviction.
The unjust conviction came about under a unique fact pattern which brought
together both Peter Liang, a rookie NYC Police Officer, teamed with another
rookie NYC Police officer, and Akai Gurley, a totally innocent person using
the stairways because of the lack of dependability of the building elevators
, in a notoriously crime ridden and dark stairway directly resulting from
the failure of the NYC Housing Authority to maintain the Pink houses in a
safe and habitable state.
Since the conviction we have seen both the New York Housing Authority and
the New York City Police Department scampering to correct their own internal
policy failures, which bear the true cause of this tragedy. NYCHA seeks to
shift blame to its workers despite evidence that the lights were out for
months and not merely one half hour from the end of a workers shift. The New
York Police Department seeks to blame a training officer its charges failed
to adequately provide CPR training to the two rookie officers, while
promising to issue a directive no longer partnering two rookie officers.
Justice can only be achieved in this case by dismissing the conviction as
not supported upon law or facts or in the alternative declaring a mistrial
and overturning the conviction. Any other solution simply perpetuates the
injustice and results in the continued seeking a scapegoat to distract from
the failure of city agencies and city officials to meet their obligations
properly.
To avoid a repeat of tragic event, city government and its officials must do
better to deliver services to protect and serve the people of New York City. |
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