In October, a 66-year-old woman wielding a bat was shot and killed by a New York City Police Department sergeant. Now, a special grand jury will weigh possible criminal charges against the police officer.
“It is important to determine exactly what happened in this tragic accident,” Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark said in a statement. “I believe that presenting the evidence to a grand jury will best accomplish that goal.”
The woman, Deborah Danner, suffered from schizophrenia. She was fatally shot in her apartment in the Bronx. RealClearLife wrote about Danner and her struggles with mental illness in a feature article published last month.
According to the New York Post, a law-enforcement source said the decision to take the Danner case to a grand jury wasn’t easy.
“There was a genuine debate over the best course of action,” the source told the newspaper. “Some people in the bureau are saying that the grand jury is the most appropriate venue to present all the evidence for determination of whether or not to bring criminal charges.”
“The other school of thought believes it’s the office trying to project to the community that we are treating it seriously and trying to mitigate damage to community relations in a case the office believes it doesn’t have much chance [to win] at trial.”
The sergeant, Hugh Barry, shot Danner on October 18 after she grabbed a bat and rushed him, authorities have said. According to Barry’s union, the officer said he feared for his life.
You can read RealClearLife‘s full article about Danner here.
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