Jury Weighs Fate of NYPD Officer in Stairwell Shooting Case

Peter Liang, testified that he didn't know anyone was in the pitch-black stairway when he was startled and unintentionally fired his drawn gun.

Each of the 12 jurors tasked with determining the fate of a rookie NYPD officer who fatally shot an innocent man in a dark public housing stairwell handled the gun used in the shooting in the case's first full day of deliberations.

Jurors passed around NYPD officer Peter Liang's nine-millimeter service weapon as they weighed whether the cop was guilty of manslaughter when he fired a shot that hit and killed 28-year-old Akai Gurley in a darkened stairwell of the Pink Houses in Brooklyn. 

Each juror was able to squeeze the gun's trigger, testing the cop's assertion that his weapon just "went off" while doing a vertical patrol in the stairwell in 2014.

They were sent home after 5 p.m. Wednesday without reaching a verdict. Deliberations will resume Thursday.

Also Wednesday, jurors asked for a court worker to read back the testimony of Liang and other witnesses. Defense attorneys also moved for a mistrial; the judge denied the request.

Liang says he accidentally fired when he was startled by a noise while patrolling the stairwell. The prosecution says he acted out of recklessness and did little to help Gurley.

Gurley was taking the stairs with his girlfriend rather than wait for an elevator.

Liang faces up to 15 years in prison if he's convicted of manslaughter and other charges.

Copyright AP - Associated Press
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