The bystander whose cell phone video showed a cop using a deadly chokehold to subdue Eric Garner was busted late Saturday for illegally possessing a gun, police sources said.
Ramsey Orta, 22, was brought to a Staten Island police precinct around 11 p.m. He was expected to be arraigned Sunday.
Orta’s arrest — just blocks from the scene of Garner’s death — came as the Rev. Al Sharpton demanded criminal charges against Officer Daniel Pantaleo, who is seen on the video using a chokehold on Garner.
Calling suspended Officer Daniel Pantaleo a “suspect,” Sharpton said the medical examiner’s ruling Friday that Garner died from neck and chest compression “is probable cause for an arrest.”
Garner’s widow, Esaw, at Sharpton’s side, implored, “I just want them to do the right thing and bring justice to my husband.”
In the July 17 caught-on-video arrest, African-American Garner argues with cops before Pantaleo, who is white, wraps his arm around the 350-pound-man’s neck, pulling him to the ground.
Cops said they were arresting Garner for selling “loosie” untaxed cigarettes. Chokeholds are barred by the NYPD.
Staten Island DA Dan Donovan “needs to say, ‘I’m moving forward to an arrest’ or ‘I’m deferring to the federal government,’” Sharpton railed.
Prosecutors are waiting for a final ME report. The feds, who could bring civil-rights charges, said they’re watching closely.
“I would be pretty surprised if it didn’t go to a grand jury,” said former federal prosecutor Alan Vinegrad, who won a conviction against Police Officer Justin Volpe in his infamous 1999 bathroom attack on Abner Louima. “Any prosecutor has their work cut out for them, trying to show that a police officer sworn to uphold the law has crossed the line.”
Lawyers said intent, the level of force and the victim’s underlying health will be key factors in bringing criminal charges.
Pantaleo lawyer Stuart London and PBA boss Patrick Lynch visited the cop’s parents’ home Saturday, but didn’t comment.
A police source said he was surprised by the homicide ruling, given the ME’s earlier finding that Garner’s windpipe was undamaged. “It seems somewhere a phone call was made,” he said.
A homicide finding doesn’t equal murder, said Vinegrad. “The government still has to prove that the officer or officers used excessive force to the point that they committed a crime.
They still have to prove the core violation…The fact that he died as a result of the force, that in and of itself doesn’t mean they’re going to be charged.”
The officers’ intent will be weighed, said Matthew Galluzzo, an attorney representing Angel Alvarez, who survived being shot 23 times by cops in 2010.
“Legally, what charge is actually appropriate? Murder is an intentional killing. I don’t think there’s going to be evidence that their purpose was to try to kill [Garner],” said Galluzzo.
The officers involved could face manslaughter charges, or a lesser charge based on recklessness, he said.
“If you put someone in a chokehold, do you realize that might actually kill somebody? Was the officer aware of the risk of this result? That’s one of the things they’re going to have to investigate,” he said.
Pantaleo’s training could also come into question, said Galluzzo. Pantaleo’s attorney could argue he wasn’t properly trained to take down someone of Garner’s size. “Then you can point the finger at the department,” Galluzzo said.