The NYPD officer who was fired earlier this year for fatally choking Eric Garner is suing to get his job back.
On Wednesday, Daniel Pantaleo filed a lawsuit in Manhattan civil court, alleging that his termination was "arbitrary and capricious," his attorney told the Post. The suit reportedly names the city, the NYPD, and Police Commissioner James O'Neill.
Pantaleo was fired this past August, more than five years after he placed Garner in an illegal chokehold for allegedly selling loose cigarettes on a Staten Island street corner. His termination was recommended by an NYPD judge following a long-delayed department trial. O'Neill accepted the non-binding ruling, calling it an "extremely difficult decision."
Both the Staten Island grand jury and the Department of Justice had previously declined to bring charges against Pantaleo, meaning he will not face criminal penalties.
While the city medical examiner determined that the homicide was triggered by the chokehold, Pantaleo's attorney, Stuart London, has blamed Garner's health and decision to resist arrest. Speaking to the Post this week, London said that Deputy Commissioner Rosemary Maldonado's ruling was "reckless."
In a statement, a spokesperson for the Law Department told Gothamist, “We will defend the Administrative Law Judge's finding and recommendation and the Police Commissioner's decision."
The officer's firing sparked anger among police unions and some rank-and-file officers, who declared "the job is dead" and threatened a work slowdown in the aftermath of the decision. A GoFundMe campaign for Pantaleo has raised over $173,000.
As part of the termination, Pantaleo was stripped of his pension benefits, but will receive the money he paid into the fund. Until August, Pantaleo continued to collect an NYPD salary, earning $119,996 this past year.
London did not respond to Gothamist's inquiries.
