New York policeman tearfully describes shooting black man

New York City Police (NYPD) officer Peter Liang (C) departs the criminal court after an arraignment hearing in the Brooklyn borough of New York City February 11, 2015. REUTERS/Brendan MCDermid

By Joseph Ax

NEW YORK (Reuters) - A loud, startling sound prompted New York Police Officer Peter Liang to pull the trigger accidentally on his service pistol as he patrolled a pitch-black stairwell, inadvertently shooting dead an unarmed black man, the officer testified on Monday.

A tearful Liang took the stand in his manslaughter trial, 14 months after the bullet he fired ricocheted off a wall and buried itself in the chest of 28-year-old Akai Gurley, who was walking one floor below in the dark on Nov. 20, 2014.

While Liang debated with his partner whether to call in the shot, fearing he would lose his job, Gurley was on a landing downstairs bleeding to death.

Liang, the final witness in the two-week trial in Brooklyn state court, told jurors he did not realize anyone had been hit until moments later, when he walked downstairs to see where the bullet had ended up.

"Oh my God, someone is hit," he recalled saying, before describing Gurley's condition as tears came to his eyes. "His eyes were rolled back...he was just laying there very still."

At one point during his testimony, Liang had to leave the courtroom to compose himself.

The shooting added to tensions across the United States over the use of force against minorities by police, although Liang, who is Chinese-American, is not accused of deliberately firing at anyone.

Prosecutors have brought several charges against Liang for drawing his weapon unnecessarily, refusing to call in the shot immediately and failing to offer Gurley medical aid despite having CPR training.

Liang said he understood officers have the discretion to unholster their guns if they are worried about their safety.

The defense has emphasized the dangers inherent in patrolling crime-ridden public housing buildings. On Thursday, two officers were shot during a similar patrol inside the stairwell of a Bronx public housing complex.

Liang also testified he did not perform CPR in part because he was "panicking" and "in shock."

During cross-examination, Assistant District Attorney Joseph Alexis emphasized Liang had received firearms training, including policy guidelines on when officers can draw their weapons.

He also asked why Liang tried to use a cell phone to call his sergeant after the shot, as opposed to using a police radio, pointing out that radio calls are recorded.

Liang said he opted for a cell phone at first because he did not want a crowd of officers responding to what he thought at the time was only an errant bullet.

Closing arguments are scheduled for Tuesday.

(Reporting by Joseph Ax; Editing by Scott Malone, Dan Grebler and Frances Kerry)