Congressman Calls Shooting of Jarrell Garris “Police Brutality.” Police Union Responds, Expose Garris’ Criminal History
Above: Rep. Jamaal Bowman; Below: APA President and Yonkers PBA President Keith Olson
By Dan Murphy
The New Rochelle Police shooting death of Jarrell Garris on July 11, continues to spark a discussion about what happened that day. The incident began on July 3 with NR police receiving “a call from a local store regarding a possible theft. The caller gave a description. The responding officers observed the man, in close proximity of the store, walking on Lincoln Avenue near North Avenue. While being placed under arrest, the man physically resisted. He was shot when he grabbed an officer’s gun, in an attempt to remove it from the holster. He was taken to a local hospital, and died 8 days later.
Garris continues to walk until he is encircled by the officers. At this point, a struggle ensues, and eventually Garris reaches for an officer’s gun and the call goes out that Garris has the gun, and he is shot. Earlier in the incident Det. Conn is heard asking for someone to “Taze” Garris, or use a Taser gun to subdue him, but Garris was not tazed before getting shot.
Westchester Congressman Jamaal Bowman released a statement that includes calling the shooting death of Garris “police brutality.”
“I am sending my deepest condolences to the friends and family of Jarrell Garris. He should be alive today and back home in North Carolina with his son. Instead, even though the police knew he experienced schizophrenia, he was shot and killed after police accused him of stealing food from a nearby grocery store. Police brutality has been sickening our country and taking the lives of our loved ones for decades. We must protect the Black bodies that are the most vulnerable and root out the police brutality that has spread to every corner of our country. Let’s begin the process of curing America of its anti-Black racism that is so intricately and intentionally woven into the fabric of every American system and institution. It’s time to enact and pass federal, state and local legislation that holds law enforcement accountable and takes a public health approach to public safety. Police cannot be the only officials involved when it comes to public safety – we need social workers, community members, doctors, and more to ensure safety for everyone. We cannot lose any more precious lives to senseless police killings.”
Bowman’s comments elicited a response from The Affiliated Police Associations of Westchester (APA). “On July 3, 2023, a team of New Rochelle police officers once again experienced how there is no such thing as a “routine” arrest, and how the unpredictable actions of one person can instantly elevate a simple arrest to a life and death situation,” writes APA President Keith Olson, who is also the President of the Yonkers PBA.
“Members of the New Rochelle Police Department received a complaint that an individual now known to be Jarrell Garris had committed a larceny at a local market. Three uniformed members of the New Rochelle Police Department, including Detective Steven Conn, observed Garris and attempted to take him into custody using a minimal amount of force. During this lawful arrest, Garris fought with the officers and resisted arrest. As the officers tried to gain control of Garris, they fell to the ground. Unexpectedly and unpredictably, Garris placed both hands on the grip of an officer’s firearm and repeatedly pulled at it in an effort to remove it from its holster. Body worn camera confirms conclusively that Garris intentionally grabbed the officer’s gun with both hands and attempted to pull it from its holster. Faced with a split-second life and death decision, and aware that Garris could have full control of the officer’s handgun in a heartbeat, Detective Conn justifiably fired one round at Garris, stopping the threat and saving the lives of the officers present.
“Officers immediately used lifesaving techniques in an attempt to save Garris’ life and he was quickly transported to Westchester Medical Center. Tragically, having been on life support since the incident, Jarrell Garris died on Monday evening. The APA offers our condolences to the entire Garris family and to the New Rochelle community.
“The APA fully recognizes the importance of full and complete transparency in all police involved shootings. We are pleased that the New Rochelle Police Department quickly released the body worn camera footage of this incident so that the public can have a true understanding of what happened and why and we look forward to a fair and expeditious review of this case by the New York State Attorney General’s Office. Unfortunately, a number of press releases and media reports have been less than transparent and have omitted many important factors that will help the public more clearly understand what led to Jarrell Garris’ death. While body camera footage clearly shows that Garris attempted to rip a handgun from one of the police officer’s holsters, there is much background information that the public should know to have a clearer picture of how and why this happened.
“For the sake of transparency, here are some facts the public should be aware of: Jarrell Garris had a lengthy criminal past and a history of mental health issues, including schizophrenia. At the time of his death, he was on felony probation for Attempted Arson in the Third Degree following his arrest for setting fire to a trash chute in a Municipal Housing Residence in New Rochelle. He was sentenced to probationary supervision for five years on November 9, 2022, with his probation supervision transferred to North Carolina. On the date of his death, he was an absconder from North Carolina, and was not authorized to be in New York; earlier that same day, he had broken into the home of a New Rochelle resident.
“Throughout his life, Jarrell Garris was subject to multiple arrests and convictions, including a 2007 felony conviction that resulted in a probationary term of five years. That plea covered a number of additional crimes, which included resisting arrest and reckless endangerment. His 2022 plea to Attempted Arson covered a number of local charges in Mount Vernon and New Rochelle as well, including a second allegation of Attempted Arson in the Fifth Degree.
“Garris was a known user of dangerous and illegal drugs. In fact, he was admitted to Mount Vernon Hospital on July 1, 2023 – just two days before this shooting – after being observed self-mutilating himself in public. While detained, he acknowledged that he was under the influence of PCP. He was treated and released from Mount Vernon Hospital.
“In summary, Jarrell Garris had a long and troubled history of mental health and legal issues, which by and large, went unaddressed. While the New Rochelle officers attempting to arrest Mr. Garris may not have known his complete criminal and mental health history; they did know that he was properly and legally subject to arrest. They also knew that, at the moment he was shot, Garris was attempting to gain control of one of their firearms. This is the risk police officers take every day: that a seemingly simple arrest can become a life and death struggle without warning.
“Sadly, Congressman Jamal Bowman has ignored all facts and has wrongly accused the officers of police brutality. Bowman dangerously continues to push his false narrative in a cheap attempt to score political points and, as usual, offers no solutions on how to solve the problem of violent mentally ill people roaming our streets. Instead, when tragedy happens, he predictably blames the police and ignores his own responsibilities as an elected official.
“The simple yet tragic fact is that Detective Conn’s actions were made necessary by the actions of Jarrell Garris. Had Detective Conn not taken swift and decisive action, we could very easily be mourning the death of multiple police officers. Noting that nearly 200 police officers have been shot in the line of duty in the U.S. in 2023, with 28 fatally shot while protecting the communities they served, we are thankful that Detective Conn and all of the responding New Rochelle police officers are alive today.
“The Affiliated Police Associations of Westchester offers its unequivocable support to the men and women of the New Rochelle Police Department. We remember that our job is never “routine” and we recognize the dangers inherent in policing and the risks faced by our Westchester police community every day. We thank the members of the New Rochelle Police Department – and all of the police departments throughout the County – for keeping our neighborhoods and families safe,” said Det. Keith Olson, President Affiliated Police Associations of Westchester, and Yonkers PBA President.
NY State Attorney General Letitia James announced that her office would conduct an investigation, and that the “Office of Special Investigation (OSI) has opened an investigation into the death of Jarrell Garris, who died on July 10, 2023 following an encounter with members of the New Rochelle Police Department (NRPD) on July 3, 2023. Pursuant to New York State Executive Law Section 70-b, OSI assesses every incident reported to it where a police officer or a peace officer, including a corrections officer, may have caused the death of a person, by an act or omission. Under the law, the officer may be on-duty or off-duty, and the decedent may be armed or unarmed.”
The Garris family said that he suffered from mental illness and would never have shot a cop. “You tried to take my son away from me. My one and old son. You’re going to give me my justice,” said Raymond Fowler, Garris’ father.
Garris family attorney William Wagstaff called Olson’s introduction of Garris’ criminal past, “a blatant character assassination.”
The statement from the Garris Family reads, “Another unarmed Black man was killed by police, and yet another defensive, insensitive, and irresponsible response from a police association. How does a detective from a neighboring police department with no role in the investigation purport to know what the unreleased body camera video shows when the family nor the community whose taxes pay for the equipment and salaries of the officers that use it don’t know?
The family applauds Congressman Jamaal Bowman’s consistent courage to speak up for the members of his district and looks askance at the NRPD’s carefully curated release of some videos but not all videos while feigning transparency.
Even more distressing is the blatant character assassination of Jarrel. The exposé of his criminal record and personal history is legally irrelevant to the fundamental question of was the shooting legally justified. The association has taken an excerpt from page 2 of the police PR playbook, the classic, but he was a criminal routine, which suggests that someone’s past makes their extra-judicial killing acceptable; it does not.
Perhaps the discussion should be about the shooter’s background, his disciplinary record, his history of aggression, racism, or incompetence. Perhaps it’s time to stop blaming the victims and start focusing on the killers’ histories.”
