CORY A. BOOKER sure si-717 Wnited States Senate July 17, 2019 ‘The Honorable William Bart Attorney General USS. Department of Justice 950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW Washington, DC 20530 Dear Attorney General Barr: 1am writing to you regarding recent news reports that state that you overruled career prosecutors the Civil Rights Division and decided against bringing civil rights charges against Daniel Pantaleo, the New York City Policy Department (NYPD) officer who placed Eric Garner in a chokehold and suffocated him to death.' As a member of the Senate Judiciary Committee, which has oversight of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), | am requesting you provide my office with a detailed explanation supporting your disturbing decision. Today marks five years since the death of Mr. Gamer. On July 17, 2014, Mr. Gamer was confronted by NYPD officers for selling untaxed cigarettes When officers tried to arrest him, Mr. Gamer struggled and was placed in a chokehold by Officer Pantaleo—a practice that is, banned by the department.’ The confrontation was caught on camera in horrific and gut- wrenching detail. Mr. Gamer, physically restrained by no less than four officers, can be heard saying in the video “I can’t breathe!” multiple times before collapsing to the ground.* Eventually, Mr. Garner died and the city’s medical examiner, as well as an expert forensic pathologist, ruled the death a homicide by chokehold and chest compression.* Mr. Gamer's death rightfully sparked enormous outrage across the country. It's d into words how deeply alarming it is that a NYPD officer used a violent and prohibited practice in arresting a man who was thought to be selling wnfaxed cigarettes. That such a minor viol resulted in that man’s death should keep all of us up at night, especially in a nation that professes sacred devotion to equality and freedom for all. " See David Shortell, Barr sides against civil rights officials in declining to bring charges against NYPD officer in Garner case, CNN, July 16, 2019, hitps:/www.cnn.com/2019/07/ 16/politcs/erie-garner-william-barr-nypd-of¥icer- daniel-pantaleo/index.htm|; Peter Williams et al., VYPD officer in Eric Garner's chokehold death won't face federal ‘charges, NBC NEWS. July 16, 2019, hutps://www.nbenews.com/news/us-news/new-york-city-officer-eric-garner-s- chokehold-dleath-won-n1030321; Kevin Johnson and William Cummings, "Today we can't breathe. DOJ will not bring civil rights charge against NYPD officer in death of Erie Garner, USA ToDAY, July 16, 2019, btps:/wwww.usatoday.com story news politics/2019,07/16/justice-department-not-bring-charges-death-eric- sgarner/1741169001 * Jake Pearson, Expert says chokehold caused NYC man's death, AP. Sept. 19, 2014, -ntps://www.apnews.com/42443fdeee364997ac4a298063 6 Teal. Md. id + Id: J. David Goodman, Difficult Decisions Ahead in Responding to Police Chokehold Homicide, N.Y. TIMES, Aug, 4, 2014, hutps:/ www.nytimes.com /2014/08/05/nyrewion/after-erie-garner-chokchold-prosecuting-police-is-an- ‘option. html?smid~pl-share.‘After his death, highly-trained career civil rights prosecutors at the Civil Rights Division at DOS, who are specialized in investigating excessive use-of-force cases, evaluated the evidence and made the recommendation that charges be brought against Officer Pantaleo. Despite the recommendation from these experts,” you sided against them by opting not to bring charges. ‘Our nation’s criminal justice system is founded on the principle etched in stone above the U.S. ‘Supreme Court: Equal Justice Under Law. No man is above the law, not even law enforcement officers. To Mr. Garner’s family and loved ones, however, those words must ring hallow. This is yet another disappointing sign that our criminal justice system is tragically broken ~ it’s why many people ~ particularly people of color ~ feel as if the system is stacked against them, without hope of accountability, even when a violent and unnecessary homicide is captured on video, for all the world to Given the deeply troubling details involving Mr. Garner's death, | am requesting you provide me and my Senator Judiciary Committee colleagues the following information. The public deserves to know how you reached such a stunning conclusion, 1. Please provide the specific grounds on which you disagreed with the recommendation of the specialized prosecutors in the Civil Rights Division in the investigation of Mr. Pantaleo. 2. Please provide the number of instances in which the Attorney General overruled the recommendations of career specialized prosecutors in the Civil Rights Division Criminal Section, 3. Please provide the number of instances in which the Attomey General overruled the recommendations of career prosecutors in other divisions at DOJ. look forward to your prompt attention to this matter. Sincerely, Cory A. Booker United States Senator old