NEW YORK – A rookie New York Police Department officer who shot an unarmed man inside a housing project is going on trial.
Opening statements are set for Monday morning in the manslaughter case against Officer Peter Liang (lee-ANG'). The officer shot and killed 28-year-old Akai Gurley in 2014.
His lawyers have said the shooting was an accident, not a crime. They've also indicated Liang will take the witness stand.
Investigators say Liang was holding his flashlight and his gun when he fired a single round in a pitch black stairwell. The bullet bounced off a wall before striking Gurley, who was on the floor below him.
Prosecutors also say that the officer and his partner argued over whether to report the shooting to supervisors.
The hottest stories ripped from the headlines, from crime to courts, legal and scandal.
