The daughter of slain Staten Island man Eric Garner is considering throwing her hat into the political arena.
Erica Garner, 25, told the New York Post yesterday that she’s entertaining the possibility of running for Congress next year, challenging Rep. Dan Donovan (R), the former Staten Island district attorney who failed to secure a grand jury conviction against the officer who killed Eric in 2014.
“[Officer Daniel Pantaleo has] been promoted,” Erica said. “He had a platform off my dad’s dead body to run for Congress, and that’s why he did it. It was a political move.”
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New York representatives are encouraging Erica to speak with other local representatives so that she can form a political strategy.
“Her first step would really be to meet with leadership and make the case of what does she bring not only to the position, but to Staten Island and Brooklyn,” Staten Island assemblyman Matthew Titone (D) told the Post.
Eric was arrested on a Staten Island sidewalk in July 2014 for allegedly selling cigarettes illegally. Pantaleo placed the 43-year-old father in a chokehold as Eric repeatedly told officers that he couldn’t breathe. He died at a nearby hospital. A grand jury declined to convict Pantaleo of any wrongdoing.
Currently, Erica appears to be the only possible Democrat who could challenge Donovan.