NEW YORK — A rookie New York City police officer accidentally shot and killed an unarmed 28-year-old man in a dark stairwell in Brooklyn late Thursday night, police said.
Police Commissioner William J. Bratton said the victim, Akai Gurley, was “a total innocent” and called the shooting “an unfortunate accident.” Gurley was not engaged in any activity other than trying to walk down the stairs, Bratton said.
Mayor Bill de Blasio offered offer his condolences to Gurley’s family. “This is a tragedy,” he said.
The officer who shot Gurley, Peter Liang, has been on the force less than 18 months and was on probationary status.
Liang, 27, and his partner, who was also new to the force, were patrolling the Louis H. Pink Houses in East New York Thursday night, part of an effort to increase the police presence at the housing complex, which had been plagued by a spate of violence, including two homicides.
The two officers had taken the elevator to check out the roof and, shortly before midnight, entered the eighth-floor stairwell to walk back down. The lights were not working, so both officers took out their flashlights.
Liang also drew his weapon, police said, and just as the officers started down the stairwell, Gurley and his girlfriend entered through a door on the seventh floor, 14 steps below.
It was unclear why, but Liang accidentally fired a single shot that struck Gurley in the chest, police said.
The force of the blast sent Gurley tumbling down two flights of stairs. The officers found him with his girlfriend next at his side.
Gurley was taken to a hospital where he was pronounced dead. Following standard protocol, Liang was relieved of his gun and his badge.
Bratton said the decision to draw a weapon in the absence of a clear threat is left “to the discretion of the officers based on what they are encountering or believe they may encounter. There’s not a specific prohibition against taking a firearm out.” But he said the officers would have to justify taking the action.