April 25, 2008


After two months of testimony by more than 50 witnesses, the three detectives charged in the Sean Bell shooting have been found not guilty on all charges.

Shouts of "No! No! No!" and swearing erupted outside the courthouse immediately after the judge read his verdict, followed by cries of "Not guilty!," from within a huge crowd of people gathered outside the Queens courthouse. Some women were heard weeping loudly. Later, shouts of "Murderer! Murderer!" were heard.

The family and supporters of Bell are expected to address the verdict any time now.

The three detectives who were charged in the shooting waived their right to a jury trial, leaving their fate in the hands of Supreme Court Justice Arthur Cooperman. If they'd been convicted of manslaughter and other charges, two of them could have faced up to 25 years in prison. The third was charged only with reckless endangerment.

Calling the shooting a “tragedy” for all police officers that have to live with the job they do, the head of the police union was the first to address the verdict.

“With this case, there are no winners, no losers,” said Patrolman’s Benevolent Association president Pat Lynch in response to the verdict. “We still have police officers that have to deal with the fact that a death was involved in their case.”

Lynch added that the union is "grateful" for the acquittals and that the verdict sends a clear message to police officers that if they are involved in a shooting, they can expect fairness in the courtroom.

Bell was gunned down on the eve of what was to be his wedding day in November 2006 outside a nightclub in Jamaica that was being investigated by undercover police officers. Bell and his friends had just left his bachelor party when police say they heard one of them reference a gun. Police fired 50 bullets at the group as they tried to drive away, killing Bell and seriously injuring his friends Joseph Guzman and Trent Benefield.

Detective Michael Oliver fired 31 of the 50 shots. He was facing charges of manslaughter, assault and reckless endangerment. Detective Gescard Isnora faced the same charges. He was the first to open fire and was hit by Bell’s car. Detective Marc Cooper faced just a reckless endangerment charge for a shot he fired that hit a nearby AirTrain platform.

About an hour after the verdict was delivered, Mayor Michael Bloomberg released the following statement, which read in part:

"There are no winners in a trial like this. An innocent man lost his life, a bride lost her groom, two daughters lost their father, and a mother and a father lost their son. No verdict could ever end the grief that those who knew and loved Sean Bell suffer."

The statement went on to urge peaceful protests by those oppose the verdict:

"There will be opportunities for peaceful dissent and potentially for further legal recourse - those are the rights we enjoy in a democratic nation. We don't expect violence or law-breaking, nor is there any place for it. We have come too far as society - and as a City - to be dragged back to those days."

Dozens of people lined up early this morning outside the Queens courthouse hoping to get into the courthouse to hear the judge’s ruling, which was delivered shortly after 9 a.m.

Bell’s family along with that of his fiancée Nicole Paultre-Bell had breakfast just around the corner from the courthouse before walking inside just before the judge handed down his verdict.

The judge’s decision follows two months of trial and testimony from more than 50 witnesses in which two very different pictures were painted of the scene outside Club Kalua on November 25th, 2006. The prosecution described the undercover detectives as reckless, failing to identify themselves as officers before opening fire on a group of unarmed men, then fabricating a story to justify the shooting.

The defense argued the detectives thought their lives were in danger, believing Bell and his friends were armed after one of them thought he heard Guzman say he was going to get his gun. No gun was ever recovered. The defense maintains the detectives did identify themselves and question the motives of Guzman and Benefield, both of whom have filed $50 million claims against the city.

Many are wondering how the city will react to the judge’s decision. The mayor has held several community meetings to encourage calm, but the NYPD refuses to reveal what extra security measures are in place, if any. Both the city and Bell supporters say they don’t anticipate any civil unrest.

"We certainly don't expect violence,” said Kelly. “There have been several vigils and memorial services. There's been no violence attended to those services. But we're prepared for any contingency."

“We are the same people that when the trial was wrongfully moved to Albany of Amadou Diallo, that I stood on these steps when they were acquitted and said, ‘we’re not going to throw one brick or one stick and we didn’t. We’re the same people,” said Reverend Al Sharpton.

"There are other means for them in case they are disappointed with the decision," said Marshall. "They can move it onto a higher court."

Eight years ago, dozens of people were arrested for violent protests when the cops who fired 41 shots at unarmed Amadou Diallo were acquitted.