A grand jury will investigate the fatal police shooting in October of a 66-year-old mentally ill Bronx woman, officials said Monday.
Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark said the panel will examine the Oct. 18 death of Deborah Danner, who was shot and killed during an encounter with cops in her Castle Hill apartment.
Clark said she wants the panel “to determine whether, and to what extent, criminal charges should be brought in connection with that incident,” according to a statement.
“I have pledged to the people of the Bronx to conduct a thorough, fair investigation into this matter and I believe that presenting the evidence to a grand jury will best accomplish that goal,” Clark said.
“It is important to determine exactly what happened in this tragic incident. “There is no timetable for the grand jury to be impaneled or for it to reach a determination.”
Under an executive order from Gov. Cuomo, state Attorney General Eric Schneiderman has the power to investigate shootings of civilians by cops. But the office can’t claim jurisdiction over a local DA in cases where the civilian was considered armed and dangerous.
Cops came to her apartment after a neighbor reported hearing screaming. The officers entered the apartment — and found her in a rear bedroom, holding a pair of scissors.
Sgt. Hugh Barry talked Danner into putting down the scissors, but claims she grabbed a baseball bat and rushed at him.
Barry was equipped with a non-lethal stun gun, but opted to go for his gun instead and shot her twice in the chest.
In the aftermath of the incident, Police Commissioner James O’Neill said Barry and other responding cops failed to follow proper protocol in not using the stun gun and not waiting for specially trained Emergency Services Unit officer to arrive and handle disarming her.
