A rookie cop who shot and killed an unarmed Brooklyn man last fall in an unlit housing project staircase was indicted for manslaughter Tuesday, says the New York Daily News. Peter Liang was indicted for second-degree manslaughter, which means he is accused of acting recklessly in the death of Akai Gurley on Nov. 20. He was also charged with reckless endangerment, second-degree assault and official misconduct. The charges could send him to prison for up to 15 years.
Liang fired one bullet when patrolling the stairways of the Pink Houses in East New York, striking the 28-year-old Gurley in the chest as the man stood in the landing a floor below next to his girlfriend. The probationary officer, who's been on the force for less than 18 months, was allegedly holding a flashlight in one hand and clutched a 9-mm Glock in his left hand when the gun fired. Liang and his partner did not answer the radio in the six-plus minutes right after the shooting and instead texted their union delegates.