New Rochelle native shot by police dies after days in coma. New York AG to investigate

The 37-year-old man shot by a New Rochelle Police detective on July 3 has died, New York Attorney General Letitia James' office confirmed Tuesday. The office said it will begin a formal investigation into the shooting.

Jarrell Garris, a New Rochelle native, had been on life support at Westchester Medical Center following the police shooting. He died Monday evening, James' office said.

On Tuesday afternoon, the Westchester County Medical Examiner’s office confirmed Garris' death.

Garris' family issued a statement through attorney William Wagstaff.

"It is with great sorrow that we confirm that our son, father, brother, nephew, cousin and friend hastransitioned," the family's statement said. "We are committed to getting Justice for Jarrell and submit that if the City of New Rochelle is sincere about its commitment to transparency and it’s not just a veneer, all videos of Jarrell’s execution should be released immediately."

"We ask for prayer and peace as we prepare to memorialize him."

After days of the New York State Police and Westchester County District Attorney Mimi Rocah's office investigating the incident, the case has been turned over to James' office. State law requires the AG's Office of Special Investigation to take over whenever a police or peace officer may have caused a person's death.

A week ago, Garris was in the area for a few days to pick up his son and take him back for the summer to Greensboro, North Carolina, where Garris had been living for less than a year. They planned to head home the evening of July 3, his family said.

Police shooting: New Rochelle police shoot man, say he was going for officer's gun

Garris, who graduated from New Rochelle High School in 2004, went by ”Jarrel” on his Facebook page. Some family members used the spelling ”Jarrell,” whereas law enforcement have used ”Jerrel.”

But that day at around 4:30 p.m., police responded to reports of someone stealing food at New Rochelle Farms, a grocery store on Lincoln and North avenues. Garris’ family said he had been eating a banana and grapes inside the store.

U.S. Rep. Jamaal Bowman said in a statement that Garris "should be alive today and back home in North Carolina with his son. Instead, even though the police knew he experienced schizophrenia, he was shot and killed after police accused him of stealing food from a nearby grocery store. Police brutality has been sickening our country and taking the lives of our loved ones for decades."

What led to the shooting?

Bodycam footage released by the New Rochelle Police Department shows police officers Kari Bird and Gabrielle Chavarry, along with Det. Steven Conn, confronting Garris on Lincoln Avenue. In the video, the officers ask him about stolen food. The New York State Police released the officers' names Wednesday.

In the video, Garris doesn’t appear to respond. Bird and Chavarry follow him across the street while a third officer, Conn, approaches.

Seeking transparency: New Rochelle police shot man over fruit, family alleges. They want full video, witnesses

The video then shows Garris in a scuffle with the officers as they attempt to place him under arrest. In the physical struggle, Garris reaches in the direction of one of the officer’s holstered firearms, the video shows, though it's unclear which officer he reached toward. He then topples over a female officer, and one officer shouts, “He’s got a gun, he’s got a gun," the video shows.

In a press release the night of the shooting, the police department said Garris reached at the officer’s gun “in an attempt to remove it from the holster.”

The video provided by the police department ends before Conn shoots his weapon. A police spokesperson said the video ends where it does out of respect for Garris’ family.

The family has called for the release of the full bodycam footage, as well as for any witnesses who saw the shooting to come forward.

"You want to be transparent, release the whole video to show the pictures of the truth," the Rev. Kevin McCall, who has acted as a family spokesperson, told reporters on Friday. "The video does not lie. This young man should be here today. Him eating fruit, grapes and a banana, should not be his death sentence."

While Conn attempted to arrest Garris, he fired one round from his department-issued firearm and hit Garris, said State Police. Bodycam video shows a handcuff on Garris' right hand during the struggle in the middle of Lincoln Avenue, a busy two-way street that runs through New Rochelle.

The officers fired no additional rounds, State Police said.

Officers used lifesaving techniques, State Police said. First responders transported Garris to Westchester Medical Center, where he had been in a coma.

All three officers have been placed on administrative leave pending results of investigations, the city Police Department confirmed.

Mental health struggles, life in North Carolina detailed by family

On Friday, some family and community members said Garris had died. However, Garris’ father, Raymond Fowler, clarified his son had been on life support.

Fowler, 58, a longtime New Rochelle resident now living in North Carolina, said Garris struggled with mental health issues, including schizophrenia, and had been contacted by New Rochelle police when he was a city resident for wellness checks.

Garris grew up just minutes walking from the scene of the shooting. He had extended family still living in New Rochelle. In the days and hours leading up to the shooting, several residents said they had seen Garris in the neighborhood.

On Friday, dozens of friends and family gathered to show support for Garris at a family press conference outside of St. Catherine A.M.E. Zion Church, just feet from where police shot Garris on Lincoln Avenue.

Police shot Garris in an area referred to as the Lincoln Avenue corridor, a historic African American community in New Rochelle. The police department and City Hall are located just around the corner from the scene.

Garris’ sister told the media that her brother had a job and was doing well in North Carolina. In a text message, his girlfriend said he was working as a caregiver in a private resident home.

After the press conference, many people went to protest at the corner of Lincoln and North avenues outside of New Rochelle Farms. A few people entered the store and knocked over produce, though a police spokesperson said no arrests were made.

New Rochelle Farms appears to have been closed since then. On Monday, the store's phone went unanswered.

On Monday evening, demonstrators again closed off the intersection of Lincoln and North avenues, outside of New Rochelle Farms, to protest against the police shooting of Garris, and against the grocery store calling police.

Eduardo Cuevas covers race and justice for the USA TODAY Network of New York. He can be reached at EMCuevas1@gannett.com and followed on Twitter @eduardomcuevas.

This article originally appeared on New York State Team: Jarrell Garris dies week after being shot by New Rochelle police