Inspector says officer used banned chokehold

New York — The New York Police Department official in charge of training new recruits said Tuesday that the restraint technique an officer used on Eric Garner five years ago, leading to Garner’s death, “meets the definition” of a banned chokehold.

Testifying at an internal disciplinary trial that could lead to Officer Daniel Pantaleo’s firing, Inspector Richard Dee cited cellphone video in which Garner is seen coughing after having Pantaleo’s arm wrapped around his neck, an indication that pressure on his windpipe obstructed his breathing. “I’m not saying he intentionally did that, but that’s where his arms are,” Dee testified as the video played of Pantaleo grabbing Garner and wrestling him to a Staten Island sidewalk in July 2014.

Dee is the latest to say what Garner’s family has long believed: that Pantaleo’s conduct violated department rules and ran counter to his training and warnings to avoid tactics that could hinder breathing.

An internal affairs investigation reached the same conclusion and disciplinary charges for Pantaleo were requested in 2015. But the case languished while federal prosecutors investigated it as a possible civil rights case. Last year, the police department cleared the way for a watchdog agency to pursue a disciplinary case.

Because the case is moving forward more than 18 months after Garner’s death, the statute of limitations has passed on cases hinging only on alleged rules violations. In order to prevail, the watchdog Civilian Complaint Review Board must show that Pantaleo acted recklessly and his conduct meets the elements of the criminal charges of attempted assault and strangulation.

Pantaleo, 33, has been on desk duty since Garner’s death.