NYPD Union Lawyers Say Eric Garner Would Have Died From Obesity Anyway

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NYPD Union Lawyers Say Eric Garner’s Obesity Killed Him, Not The Chokehold

According to the Washington Post, NYPD union lawyers believe Eric Garner’s poor health ultimately led to his death, not Officer Daniel Pantaleo’s chokehold.

Pantaleo’s attorney pleaded with the court that his client should be cleared of all fault because Garner “died from being morbidly obese.”

“He was a ticking time bomb that resisted arrest,” London said during an administrative hearing. “If he was put in a bear hug, it would have been the same outcome.”

In 2014, Pantaleo tried to restrain Garner with a “chokehold” that compressed his throat and chest, triggering a fatal asthma attack while Staten Island police officers attempted to arrest the Garner for selling loose cigarettes.

Pantaleo reportedly has been on desk duty since the death and in order to fire him, the NYPD needs to prove that Pantaleo used a chokehold forbidden by the department in a way that counts as criminal conduct.