A New York City police officer was charged with second-degree manslaughter on Friday threw A picnic cooler filled with drinks is held by a fleeing suspect who crashes his motor scooter in 2023.
Sergeant Eric Duran was convicted by Judge Guy Mitchell in Bronx Criminal Court. death of Eric Dupre. Duran, 38, is the first New York Police Department (NYPD) officer in years to be tried for killing someone while on duty.
“The fact that the defendant is a police officer is of no bearing,” the judge said before reading his verdict in the brief hearing. “He shall be treated as an individual and the other defendant.”
Dupree’s family members wept as the verdict was read. Dupree’s wife, Orleansis Velez, said afterward that she was not only happy, but surprised.
“I’m waiting for justice like everyone else, but when the moment happens, you can’t believe it’s going to happen,” she said outside court. “It’s been too long. These people are killing civilians, killing everyone. They don’t give a reason.”
Duran did not respond when the decision was released, and his attorney and representatives of his police union did not immediately respond to emails seeking comment.
Duran was suspended with pay pending the investigation, but the department confirmed Friday that he was fired following his conviction under state law. Duran now faces up to 15 years in prison when he is sentenced on March 19.
State Attorney General Letitia James, who prosecuted the case, offered her condolences to Dupre’s family.
“While Eric cannot be returned to his loved ones, today’s decision does justice to his memory,” she said in a statement.
Duran also faces charges of criminally negligent homicide and assault.
Mitchell initially dismissed the assault count, saying prosecutors failed to show he intended to hurt Dupre. He also did not enter a verdict on the criminally negligent homicide charge because he had already convicted Duran of the more serious manslaughter charge.
Duran has pleaded not guilty and opted for a bench trial — meaning a judge, not a jury, will render the verdict.
On August 23, 2023, authorities say Dupree sold drugs to an undercover officer in the Bronx and then fled.
Security footage shows Duran, part of the narcotics unit conducting the operation, grabbing a nearby red cooler and quickly throwing it in an attempt to stop Dupre.
A container filled with ice, water and soda hit Dupre, who lost control of the scooter, hit a tree and landed on the pavement before landing under a parked car.
The 30-year-old man, who was not wearing a helmet, suffered severe head injuries and died almost instantly, prosecutors said.
Duran, testifying in his own defense, said he had only seconds to react and was trying to shield Dupre from the other officers as he sped toward them. Dupre told the court that he saw the extent of the injuries and immediately tried to help them.
“He was running at us,” Duran said in court. “I don’t have time. I only have time to try to stop again or try to get him to change directions. That’s all I have time to think about.”
But prosecutors have maintained that Dupre was not a threat — and that his death was not an accident, but the result of Duran’s reckless, reckless and intentional actions.
They suggested the officer had enough time to warn others to evacuate, but threw the cooler in anger and frustration.
