Justice in Brooklyn
This article is from the archive of The New York Sun before the launch of its new website in 2022. The Sun has neither altered nor updated such articles but will seek to correct any errors, mis-categorizations or other problems introduced during transfer.
Meeting behind closed doors, 12 residents of Kings County yesterday voted not to indict Officer Richard Neri on charges relating to his fatal shooting of Timothy Stansbury on the rooftop of a Brooklyn housing project. They were able to reach this decision, despite many angry calls that there was no way they would be able to be fair or just to Officer Neri. Soon after the shooting, Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly announced that the shooting, of an unarmed 19-year-old, had appeared unjustified. That was followed by reports that the district attorney, Charles J. Hynes, would ask the members of the grand jury to consider second-degree manslaughter charges against Officer Neri. There were calls for the case to be moved out of Brooklyn because the case had become too charged; that there was no way that the grand jurors could possibly do their job. While the details of what went on in the grand jury remain secret, it is clear that it was a demonstration of Brooklyn at its best. The grand jury was able to keep a clear mind amid a storm.
Pat Lynch, the head of the police officers’ union, denounced Commissioner Kelly and called for him to step aside. Better to have placed his faith in the people of Kings County.
When Mr. Kelly made his comments, he was offering his opinion on what was a potentially explosive situation. He made no attempt to say that his opinion was fact. He made it clear the grand jury would have to make a final decision on whether Officer Neri’s conduct had been criminal. And while the grand jury ultimately decided that there was no criminality, that should not take away from Mr. Kelly’s actions in the aftermath of the shooting when he kept his calm and set an example for others to follow. Officer Neri will still have to deal with a Police Department inquiry, and there will now doubtless be an attempt to seek federal charges against him.
If the Police Department and federal reviews proceed with the same focus and clear vision as Mr. Kelly and the 12 Brooklyn grand jurors, then Officer Neri, his colleagues, Timothy Stansbury’s family, and the other residents of the city’s housing projects can all regain some measure of confidence in the system.
