According to reports, the family sought $75 million in an initial claim filed in October 2014, and rejected an offer of $5 million from the city. The city had until Friday, the actual anniversary, to settle the case before the family filed a lawsuit.
On July 17, 2014, Garner, a father of six, was placed in a banned choke hold by Staten Island police officer Daniel Pantaleo and tackled to the ground by other officers for allegedly selling un-taxed cigarettes outside of a convenience store. The entire ordeal was caught on video, which later went viral online.
Garner, 43, screamed “I can’t breathe,” which would later become a rally cry for the protest that ignited across the nation, more than half a dozen times before dying. A medical examiner ruled Garner’s death a homicide, but a Staten Island grand jury did not bring charges against Pantaleo.
USA Today reports the Garner family will lead a rally Saturday (July 18) outside the Brooklyn offices of the U.S. Attorney in hopes to bring about federal charges against the officers involved in Garner’s death.
“This is not about people getting money,” Rev. Al Sharpton, who is reported to be participating in the upcoming rally told The New Times Monday. “This is about justice. We’ve got to restructure our police departments and how we deal with policing nationwide.”
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