What you should know
- A grand jury voted not to charge the New Rochelle police officer for the shooting death of an apparent armed suspect during a traffic stop in June.
- Officers stopped a car near Potter Avenue and Pierce Street just before 11 p.m. on June 5 for what police later described in a statement as multiple traffic and vehicle violations.
- The police department says Kamal Flowers, 24, of New Rochelle fled the car on foot after the stop. Following a confrontation, police said, Flowers pulled out a gun and tried to shoot the officers. An officer, Alec McKenna, responded to the fire and fired once, hitting Flowers. Flowers died in an ambulance on the way to the hospital.
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NEW YORK – A grand jury has voted not to indict the New Rochelle police officer for the shooting death of an apparent armed suspect during a traffic stop in June.
Officers stopped a car near Potter Avenue and Pierce Street just before 11 p.m. on June 5 for what police later described in a statement as multiple traffic and vehicle violations.
The police department says Kamal Flowers, 24, of New Rochelle fled the car on foot after the stop. The police chased him and finally fired an electroshock weapon in an attempt to stop him.
After a fight, police said, Flowers pulled out a gun and tried to shoot the officers. An officer, Alec McKenna, responded to the fire and fired once, hitting Flowers. Flowers died in an ambulance on the way to the hospital.
A Ruger 9mm pistol was recovered from Flowers, police said. The driver of the vehicle, a black 2019 Dodge Sedan, fled the scene, according to police at the time. It is unclear if he has since been located.
On Wednesday, Westchester County Prosecutor Anthony A. Scarpino, Jr. said during a news conference that four law enforcement agencies assisted with the investigation and all confirmed that Flowers was armed at the time of the incident with “an operable weapon.”
McKenna testified before a grand jury, as did 35 others, including eight expert witnesses, one of whom was a representative of the manufacturer of the stun gun discharged by the police officer the night of the incident.
Scarpino also said that at the time of the shooting, Flowers had a Ruger 9mm semi-automatic pistol with 10 rounds of ammunition found in his pocket. Additionally, Scarpino said, the forensic analysis of the weapon matched Flowers’ DNA.
The grand jury was charged with intentional murder and instructed on “justification defense” regarding the “use of force and lethal physical force by police,” but found no reasonable cause to file a charge, he said. Scarpino.
During Wednesday’s press conference, when Scarpino was asked about information about “possible racial slurs by police officers” at the time of the incident, he offered no comment.
Although the criminal case is now closed, a civil case later could examine other aspects of the case, Scarpino said.
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