NYC Detective Should Be Fired for Fatal Shooting of Unarmed Man, Judge Says
A New York City detective involved in the fatal shooting of an unarmed man five years ago should be fired, a police department trial has determined.
The detective, Gescard F. Isnora, acted outside of departmental guidelines in the shooting incident, endangering both himself and others, an unnamed police official told the New York Times.
Isnora was one of five police officers involved in the 2006 shooting of three men outside a strip club in Queens. One of the men, Sean Bell, who was celebrating his upcoming wedding, was killed. His two companions were seriously wounded. Isnora and two other officers were acquitted in a 2008 criminal trial on charges ranging from manslaughter to reckless endangerment.
The current proceeding is an administrative one in which a deputy police commissioner, acting as a trial judge, makes a recommendation as to whether the officer should be punished. The final decision will be up to Police Commissioner Raymond W. Kelly.
The trial judge also recommended that a second officer involved in the shooting be found not guilty of improperly firing his weapon and should be allowed to remain on the force.
