NEW ROCHELLE – A police officer who shot and killed an African American man in this city will not be prosecuted for his death.
Westchester District Attorney Anthony Scarpino announced that a grand jury voted not to indict New Rochelle Police Officer Alec McKenna in the June 5 death of Kamal Flowers.
“The death of Kamal Flowers was tragic. Your family and friends have lost a loved one and are devastated by this event. I am deeply saddened by his death because his life mattered. Any use of deadly force is difficult to accept, ”said Scarpino.
“We want the Flowers family and the people of New Rochelle to know that this investigation had the highest priority for this office and, even as we have been challenged by COVID-19, we did everything possible to ensure the veracity of the investigation,” he added The prosecutor.
The grand jury determination, known as a no true bill , ended the grand jury investigation and means no criminal charges will be brought against the police officer.
Under New York State law, grand jury proceedings are confidential and cannot be made public without a court order.
In the interest of transparency, the Prosecutor’s Office asked the court to be allowed to disclose information related to the presentation to the grand jury, including the charges filed.
Judge David Zuckerman allowed the information to be released.
The African-American’s death took place at approximately 10:54 p.m. on Sharot Street. The investigation into the circumstances surrounding Flowers’ death began immediately after the incident.
The investigation was conducted by four law enforcement agencies: the Westchester County District Attorney’s Office, the New York State Police, the County Department of Public Safety and the New Rochelle Police Department.
The grand jury conducted a full and thorough review of the evidence.
A total of 223 exhibits were admitted as evidence before the grand jury, including: 138 photographs, six maps, three documents, 33 video files, 25 of which come from surveillance cameras during and around the time of the incident, four recordings audio, including radio calls and a 911 call, and 16 individual physical exhibits (including the 9mm Ruger )
The grand jury heard testimony and analyzed all the evidence regarding the use of deadly force during this police encounter. The grand jury was charged with intentional murder.
As required by law, the grand jury was instructed to defend the justification under article 35 of the Penal Law regarding the use of force and lethal physical force by the police.
After deliberating on the evidence presented in this matter, the grand jury found no reasonable cause to vote on an indictment.
CAPTION
A Westchester grand jury voted not to indict New Rochelle Police Officer Alec McKenna (right) for the June 5 death of Kamal Flowers (left).
