In 2014, rookie NYPD officer Peter Liang was conducting a patrol with his partner in a Brooklyn public housing project known as Louis H. Pink Houses. With his gun drawn, Liang fired a shot that ricocheted and struck 28-year-old Akai Gurley.
Gurley was killed, and Liang was found guilty of manslaughter charges and released from the force, though the shooting was ruled an accident and Liang was spared prison time.
On Monday, the city reached a settlement with Gurley’s family, agreeing to pay $4.1 million. In addition, the New York City Housing Authority will pay $400,000, while Liang will be personally responsible for paying $25,000.
"I’m glad it’s all done. I’m pleased with the outcome," said Gurley’s girlfriend, Kimberly Ballinger, according to Raw Story.
According to Scott Rynecki, the entire sum will be placed in a fund for Gurley’s 4-year-old daughter, Akaila, and kept off-limits until she is 18. The money will be invested to provide roughly $10 million over Akaila’s lifetime.
The attorney also indicated that Ballinger may appeal to the court to receive a monthly allowance from the settlement.
The New York City mayor’s office expressed its deep regret over the incident.
"From retraining our officers to adding body cameras to launching neighborhood policing, our administration is taking significant steps to strengthen the relationship between our officers and the communities they serve," deputy press secretary Monica Klein told NBC News.
Police shootings of unarmed black men by white officers, an all-too-common occurrence once kept hidden, have made headlines in recent years, leading to waves of protest nationally, resulting in vastly increased attention to the endemic problem and increased resources to address the behavior.
Despite increased education of officers at the local level, and the involvement of monitoring at the federal level, the problem has not diminished significantly. Liang is one of a handful of officers who has faced repercussions for a police-related shooting.
