National

Prosecutor Filings Detail Fatal Stairwell Shooting by NYPD

Published

11 years ago

June 24, 2015

Men gather outside of the building where a man was allegedly shot by a police officer the night before at the Louis Pink Houses public housing complex, Friday, Nov. 21, 2014, in Brooklyn borough of New York. A rookie police officer with his gun drawn shot to death 28-year-old Akai Gurley, an unarmed, innocent man in the darkened stairwell of the crime-ridden public housing complex. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

MICHAEL BALSAMO, Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — A rookie police officer was arguing with his partner over who should call their supervisor in the chaotic moments after he’d accidentally fired his gun into a darkened stairwell of a public housing complex, and he did nothing to help when he discovered later that he’d mortally wounded an unarmed man, the prosecution says in court papers.

Officer Peter Liang is charged with manslaughter in the Nov. 20 death of Akai Gurley in the Louis Pink Houses in Brooklyn. He has pleaded not guilty and his lawyer notes the shooting was an accident.

Prosecution motions released Tuesday gave these details:

Liang and his partner, Shaun Landau, were on patrol on the eighth floor of one of the buildings at about 11 p.m. when they walked into the stairwell.

Liang held his flashlight over his head and had his Glock pistol pointed directly in front of him when he started to walk down the stairs. His partner was still in the hallway when he heard a gunshot. At the same time, Gurley and his girlfriend, Melissa Butler, were on the landing of the staircase below. The bullet had bounced off a wall before striking Gurley. The couple managed to get down several flights of stairs before Gurley collapsed.

Liang ran out of the staircase and his partner, using an expletive, asked what happened.

“It went off by accident,” Liang said, then repeatedly exclaimed he would be fired.

The two stood in the hallway and argued for several minutes about who should call their supervisor to report gunshot and what phone should be used.

“You call,” Liang told his partner.

“No, you call,” Landau said.

But no one called. Instead, Landau went into the stairwell, searching the walls for bullet holes, but soon heard a “grunting noise” coming from the floors below. When he reached the fifth floor, he saw Gurley’s body and Butler kneeling over him, tears pouring down her face.

By then, Butler was on the phone with a 911 operator, who was trying to walk her through performing CPR as the officers stood nearby.

“Neither defendant nor Officer Landau provided any medical care to Mr. Gurley. Nor did they summon an ambulance,” prosecutors wrote in the court filing. Instead, the two of them walked around Gurley’s body to the landing on the fourth floor.

It was nearly 20 minutes after the shooting when the officers radioed to report “an accidental fire.”

Liang was later indicted on charges including manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, official misconduct and assault. Prosecutors said he disregarded his training and should not have had his gun drawn nor his finger on the trigger.

Liang pleaded not guilty in February and is currently free without bail.

His attorney Stephen Worth, who had tried to get the court to dismiss the indictment, said Tuesday, “We wish the judge would have taken a more intensive look at the grand jury presentation. We believe it was not a fair presentation for officer Liang.”

The case was closely watched following the Dec. 3 grand jury decision not to indict a white police officer in the chokehold death of Eric Garner, an unarmed black man who was arrested on Staten Island. That decision — along with a grand jury’s refusal to charge a white officer in the Ferguson, Missouri, shooting of Michael Brown, an unarmed black 18-year-old — prompted mass protests decrying the grand jury system as biased. Liang, 27, is Asian; Gurley, 28, was black.

On Tuesday, New York took a step to give such cases special consideration by appointing the attorney general to investigate them, at least for a year. Brooklyn District Attorney Kenneth Thompson, who presented evidence to the grand jury against Liang, has opposed the idea.

Brooklyn Supreme Court Judge Danny Chun ruled that evidence presented to the grand jury was legally sufficient to support manslaughter charges against the officer. Liang is due back in court in September.

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Oakland Post: Week of December 31, 2025 – January 6, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of – December 31, 2025 – January 6, 2026

Published

2 weeks ago

January 2, 2026

Oakland Post

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2025 in Review: Seven Questions for Assemblymember Lori Wilson — Advocate for Equity, the Environment, and More

Her rise has also included several historic firsts: she is the only Black woman ever appointed to lead the influential Assembly Transportation Committee, and the first freshman legislator elected Chair of the California Legislative Black Caucus. She has also been a vocal advocate for vulnerable communities, becoming the first California legislator to publicly discuss being the parent of a transgender child — an act of visibility that has helped advanced representation at a time when political tensions related to social issues and culture have intensified.

Published

2 weeks ago

December 29, 2025

Oakland Post

Assemblymember Lori D. Wilson (D-Suisun City). File photo.

By Edward Henderson, California Black Media

Assemblymember Lori D. Wilson (D-Suisun City) joined the California Legislature in 2022 after making history as Solano County’s first Black female mayor, bringing with her a track record of fiscal discipline, community investment, and inclusive leadership.

She represents the state’s 11th Assembly District, which spans Solano County and portions of Contra Costa and Sacramento Counties.

California Black Media spoke with Wilson about her successes and disappointments this year and her outlook for 2026.

What stands out as your most important achievement this year?

Getting SB 237 passed in the Assembly. I had the opportunity to co-lead a diverse workgroup of colleagues, spanning a wide range of ideological perspectives on environmental issues.

How did your leadership contribute to improving the lives of Black Californians this year?

The Black Caucus concentrated on the Road to Repair package and prioritized passing a crucial bill that remained incomplete during my time as chair, which establishes a process for identifying descendants of enslaved people for benefit eligibility.

What frustrated you the most this year?

The lack of progress made on getting Prop 4 funds allocated to socially disadvantaged farmers. This delay has real consequences. These farmers have been waiting for essential support that was promised. Watching the process stall, despite the clear need and clear intent of the voters, has been deeply frustrating and reinforces how much work remains to make our systems more responsive and equitable.

What inspired you the most this year?

The resilience of Californians persists despite the unprecedented attacks from the federal government. Watching people stay engaged, hopeful, and determined reminded me why this work matters and why we must continue to protect the rights of every community in our state.

What is one lesson you learned this year that will inform your decision-making next year?

As a legislator, I have the authority to demand answers to my questions — and accept nothing less. That clarity has strengthened my approach to oversight and accountability.

In one word, what is the biggest challenge Black Californians are facing currently?

Affordability and access to quality educational opportunities.

What is the goal you want to achieve most in 2026?

Advance my legislative agenda despite a complex budget environment. The needs across our communities are real, and even in a tight fiscal year, I’m committed to moving forward policies that strengthen safety, expand opportunity, and improve quality of life for the people I represent.

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2025 in Review: Seven Questions for Assemblymember Tina McKinnor, Champion of Reparations, Housing and Workers’ Rights

In 2025, McKinnor pushed forward legislation on renters’ protections, re-entry programs, reparations legislation, and efforts to support Inglewood Unified School District. She spoke with California Black Media about the past year and her work. Here are her responses.

Published

2 weeks ago

December 29, 2025

Oakland Post

Assemblymember Tina McKinnor (D-Inglewood). File photo.

By Joe W. Bowers Jr., California Black Media

Assemblymember Tina McKinnor (D-Inglewood) represents

California’s 61st Assembly District.

As a member of the California Legislative Black Caucus (CLBC),

McKinnor was elected in 2022. She chairs the Los Angeles County Legislative Delegation and leads the Assembly Public Employment and Retirement Committee. McKinnor also served as a civic engagement director, managed political campaigns, and worked as chief of staff for former Assemblymembers Steven Bradford and Autumn Burke.

Looking back on 2025, what do you see as your biggest win?

Assembly Bill (AB) 628. If rent is $3,000, people should at least have a stove and a refrigerator. It’s ridiculous that people were renting without basic appliances.

I’m also proud that I was able to secure $8.4 million in the state budget for people coming home from incarceration. That includes the Homecoming Project, the menopause program for incarcerated women, and the Justice Leaders Program.

How did your leadership help make life better for Black Californians this year?

After the Eaton Fire, I pushed to get the same kind of support for affected areas that wealthier regions get after disasters.

I also did a lot of work building political power— establishing the Black Legacy PAC and California for All of Us PAC so we could support Black candidates and educate voters. We also called voters to make sure they understood Prop 50.

People need to understand this: there are only 12 Black legislators in the Capitol. Folks act like we can just walk in and pass reparations, but that’s not how it works.

What frustrated you most this year?

The governor did not have the political will to sign these bills: AB 57 and AB 62. They both passed overwhelmingly in the Assembly and the Senate. We did the work. The only person who didn’t have the political will to sign them was the governor.

The public needs to ask the governor why he didn’t sign the bills. We can’t keep letting people off the hook. He has to answer.

I also introduced AB 51 — the bill to eliminate interest payments on Inglewood Unified School District’s long-standing state loan — held in the Appropriations Committee. That was frustrating,

What inspired you most in 2025?

The civil rights trip to Alabama was life changing. We visited the Legacy Museum and the National Memorial for Peace and Justice. We took members of the Black, Latino, Jewish, and API caucuses with us. It changed all of us.

People aren’t always against us — they just don’t know our history.

What’s one lesson from 2025 that will shape how you approach decisions next year?

The legislative trip to Norway taught me that collaboration matters. Government, labor, and industry sit down together there. They don’t make villains. Everybody doesn’t get everything they want, but they solve problems.

What’s the biggest challenge facing Black Californians in one word?

Inequity. It shows up in housing, wealth, stress – all these things.

What’s the number one goal you want to accomplish in 2026?

Bringing back AB 57 and AB 62, and securing money for the Inglewood Unified loan interest forgiveness.