Tisch Refuses to Fire Officer Who Killed Driver, Despite Judge's Finding

New York Times

14 hours ago

Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch rejected the recommendation of an administrative judge and said on Thursday that a lieutenant who fatally shot a man during a confrontation that began after a seatbelt stop should not be fired.
In her decision, Commissioner Tisch said Lieutenant Jonathan Rivera shot the man, Allan Feliz, because he believed Mr. Feliz was about to run over Edward Barrett, a police officer who was present during the traffic stop in 2019 in the Bronx.
Commissioner Tisch, who has the final say over discipline, said her decision relied in large part on a report from the state attorney general, Letitia James, who declined to prosecute Lieutenant Rivera in 2020. The police commissioner said she was convinced that Lieutenant Rivera had shot Mr. Feliz because he believed 'doing so was necessary to save Officer Barrett's life.'
She said Lieutenant Rivera had made 'a fair and realistic assessment of an incredibly fast-moving, dangerous situation' that required him 'to make a split-second decision when he believed that his fellow officer's life was at immediate risk.'
The decision had been closely watched by union leaders and supporters of families whose loved ones were killed by the police. The families' allies saw the case as a test of the commissioner's willingness to discipline officers accused of serious wrongdoing.
Commissioner Tisch, whom Mayor Eric Adams appointed in November, has been praised for shaking up her command staff following scandals and accusations of corruption. But some union officials have complained that discipline that followed has been heavy-handed.
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