Akai Gurley was visiting his girlfriend, Melissa Butler, who lives in the Pink Houses project in Brooklyn. As they entered the stairwell to leave, police on a routine patrol entered the same “dimly lit” stairwell from the eighth floor. One of the officers had his gun drawn and, apparently, his finger on the trigger.
According to Butler, the officer almost immediately fired a shot into Gurley’s chest.
Gurley and and Butler then attempted to flee down the stairs but Gurley collapsed on the fifth floor. He was later pronounced dead at Brookdale Hospital.
The shooting officer was later identified as Peter Liang, a rookie who was still on probation after less than 18 months on the force.
— Anonymous (@An0nym0u5v3c7oR) December 27, 2014
In a press conference, New York Police Commissioner Bill Bratton called the incident a "tragedy" and blamed the "accidental discharge" of the officer's gun.
