Ramarley Graham, an 18-year-old from the Bronx, was shot and killed early last year in his mother’s apartment by an NYPD officer after running upstairs and trying to flush some weed down the toilet. He was unarmed. Although a grand jury opted to charge the officer, Richard Haste, with manslaughter, making him the first active cop to face criminal charges for a deadly shooting since 2006, a judge tossed the indictment today, ruling that the prosecution inadvertently misled jurors by telling them not to consider whether Haste was warned via radio that Graham had a gun. Haste’s lawyer cited the prosecution’s “sloppy wording” in the judge’s decision. While the Bronx D.A. can appeal or bring new charges, the possibility of another drawn-out grand jury process provided little solace for Graham’s family.
“He killed my child. What more can you do to me?” shouted Graham’s mother, Constance Malcolm, before being removed from the court. Outside, she added, “I am angry and cannot express my feelings alone. I am ready to take it to the streets and the highest of the highest. Please be prepared for a major protest.”
Reverend Al Sharpton said in a statement, “This is an outrageous miscarriage of justice and an insult to the family and supporters of Ramarley Graham. We demand that a new grand jury is convened immediately and that the case is re-presented.”
“Right now we are angry,” said the boy’s father, Frank Graham. “We are upset and very disappointed.” Malcolm was taken to the hospital following the ruling, he added. “Everything just overwhelmed her.”
