A Bronx judge has thrown out the criminal case against an NYPD officer accused in the fatal shooting death of an 18-year-old. The manslaughter indictment was tossed due to a mistake made by the district attorney, ABC News reports.
Officer Richard Haste fatally shot Ramarley Graham last year, allegedly believing that he was armed and dealing drugs. The teen was cornered in his grandmother’s Bronx home.
“I am angry and cannot express my feelings along,” said Constance Malcolm, mother of the slain youngster. “I am ready to take it to the streets and the highest of the highest. Please be prepared for a major protest.”
Graham’s family is prepared to exhaust all options, if necessary. “If it means going back to the grand jury or if we have to ask the federal court to deal with this case, we are going to keep fighting, no matter what,” Ramarley’s father, Frank Graham, said. “Wherever it leads us, we will go there. We will never stop until justice is served in this case, until Richard Haste goes to prison for murdering our son. If we start over, we will start stronger.”
In building a case against Haste, prosecutors stand accused of not providing a grand jury with adequate information to bring about an indictment. They are expected to present the case again.
Rev. Al Sharpton, who has been aiding in the family’s battle, released a statement via his National Action Network calling the turn of events an “outrageous miscarriage of justice and an insult to the family and supporters of Ramarley Graham.” Sharpton and the NAN will hold a protest this Saturday (May 15).
Haste pleaded not guilty to charges stemming from the shooting.
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Photo: Andrew Burton
