The state attorney general’s office is declining to prosecute an NYPD officer who shot and killed a man in Far Rockaway last year.
Attorney General Letitia James said Friday her office would not be able to prove in court that officer James Cameron broke the law when he killed Quayshawn Samuel during a foot pursuit, because Cameron thought the man was going to shoot him. New York law allows someone to use deadly force if they believe their life is in imminent danger.
Cameron is assigned to 101st Precinct’s Neighborhood Safety Team, a controversial unit launched after Mayor Eric Adams took office as part of his approach to crack down on a rise in gun violence during the pandemic. The units proactively search for crime and firearms in areas with high rates of violence, instead of responding to 911 calls.
“A prosecutor would not be able to disprove beyond a reasonable doubt that Officer Cameron’s use of deadly force against Mr. Samuel was justified under New York law and will not seek charges in this case,” investigators wrote in a report released Friday explaining their decision.
An attorney representing Samuel’s family called the investigation “incomplete” and said the AG’s office relied too much on the accounts of police, instead of speaking with more witnesses who watched what happened.
“Unfortunately, we can’t ask Quayshawn what happened,” Ilya Novofastovsky said in an interview.
According to the AG’s Office of Special Investigation, which reviews all killings by law enforcement and deaths in custody in the state, police were monitoring surveillance footage of an apartment building in Far Rockaway when they noticed a group of men milling around the lobby and decided to send officers from the 101st Precinct’s Neighborhood Safety Team to investigate “potential criminal activity.”
As officers James Cameron and Ryan Nohilly were approaching the back doors of the building, according to the AG’s office, Samuel ran out of the building. Video…
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