Press Release: Civilian Complaint Review Board Finds NYPD Officers Used Excessive Force in Near-Fatal Shooting of Bronx Man

New York, New York, November 26, 2024- The NYC Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB) completed its investigation into the conduct of the police officers who in 2023 shot and grievously wounded Raul de la Cruz, a Bronx man, while he experienced a mental health crisis. The CCRB inquiry substantiated charges of excessive force and discrimination, the same claims which are included in Mr. de la Cruz's lawsuit, and recommended the highest form of discipline. On the heels of the CCRB's investigation, Mr. de la Cruz has now filed to request to amend his complaint in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York to add another defendant officer who was identified by the CCRB and found to have used unlawful force against Mr. de la Cruz.

On March 26, 2023, NYPD officers shot and nearly killed Mr. de la Cruz while they knew he was experiencing a mental health crisis. His father, fearing for his son's safety, had called 311 seeking appropriate help for a mental health crisis. NYPD officers shot Mr. de la Cruz almost immediately after they arrived. The officers' multiple bullets ripped through Mr. de la Cruz's body, nearly killing him.

A CCRB panel substantiated allegations against Police Officer Derek Bernard, finding that he abused his authority and used unauthorized force when he shot Mr. de la Cruz, based on Mr. de la Cruz's actual or perceived mental disability. The CCRB recommended the highest level of discipline - termination of Officer Bernard - and has referred Officer Bernard to the next step in the CCRB's disciplinary process, a hearing within the CCRB Administrative Prosecution Unit.

The investigation of Police Officer Nicholas Trupia, the second shooting officer, was not completed as that officer resigned before the investigation concluded. Charges of excessive force were also substantiated against a third officer, Police Officer Elyjah Bennett, whom Mr. de la Cruz now seeks to add to his lawsuit.

All CCRB recommendations are subject to approval by the NYPD Commissioner, who opted against following the CCRB's recommendation for Officer Bennett and issued no penalty.

Mr. de la Cruz was on the brink of death as a result of Officer Bernard's discriminatory treatment and use of excessive deadly force. The de la Cruz family, including Mr. Santo de la Cruz, who witnessed the horrific shooting of his son after calling for help, has called for Officer Bernard's termination.

The near-fatal shooting of Mr. de la Cruz is one among a long series caused by New York City's all-too-often deadly policy and practice of sending NYPD officers to respond to mental health crises. Countless experts, including the United States Department of Justice, have concluded that relying on the police to address mental health crises is more likely to exacerbate than de-escalate the mental health crises, and more likely to result in harm to people in need. Mr. de la Cruz's experience confirms that NYC must remove police as the responders to mental health crises - and provide the health care response that people with disabilities deserve - now.

"I still don't feel ok," said Raul de la Cruz, "but it makes me feel good to be part of this lawsuit because I know it is a step to getting justice."

"We cannot tolerate one more death or near death of a New Yorker with a mental disability at the hands of the NYPD," said Maureen Belluscio, Disability Justice Managing Attorney at New York Lawyers for the Public Interest, one of Mr. de la Cruz's attorneys. "The findings of the CCRB are a necessary first step toward justice. We hope the court provides Mr. de la Cruz with the relief he deserves, as the NYPD has wholly failed in its duty to protect New Yorkers."

"The CCRB's investigation has shown what advocates and New Yorkers with mental disabilities have long already known - the NYPD routinely responds with excessive, and often deadly, force against people experiencing mental health crises," said Luna Droubi, Partner at Beldock Levine & Hoffman, another of Mr. de la Cruz's attorneys. "The CCRB's decision lends critical weight to a key goal of the lawsuit: ensuring that police are not first responders to mental health crises so that no one else has to suffer the same trauma that Mr. de la Cruz has endured."

"The CCRB has concluded that police officers in this case discriminated against Mr. de la Cruz, and we seek to amend this complaint to hold all the officers involved accountable with the hope that it never happens again," said Angela Daker, Partner at White & Case, who represents Mr. de la Cruz on a pro bono basis.

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About New York Lawyers for the Public Interest (NYLPI)

Founded nearly 50 years ago by leaders of the bar, New York Lawyers for the Public Interestpursues equality and justice for all New Yorkers. NYLPI works toward a New York where all people can safely thrive in their communities, with quality healthcare and housing, good schools, and environmentally sound neighborhoods. In NYLPI's vision, all New Yorkers live with dignity and independence, with the resources they need to succeed. NYLPI's community-driven approach powers its commitments to civil rights and to disability, health, immigrant, and environmental justice. NYLPI seeks lasting change through litigation, community organizing, policy advocacy, pro bono service, and education. Through its Disability Justice Program, NYLPI prioritizes advocacy on behalf of people with mental disabilities, including the reform of New York City's response to individuals experiencing mental health crises. We have successfully litigated to obtain the body-worn camera footage from the NYPD officers who shot and killed individuals experiencing mental health crises. In late 2021, NYLPI and co-counsel (including Beldock Levine & Hoffman LLP) filed Baerga v. New York City, 21-CV-05762 (SDNY),a class action lawsuit to halt New York's practice of dispatching police to respond to mental health crises. On October 2, 2024, the United States Department of Justice filed a Statement of Interestin support of this class action lawsuit.

About Beldock Levine & Hoffman LLP

Beldock Levine & Hoffman LLPhas been at the forefront of ground-breaking civil rights cases involving police misconduct, wrongful convictions, the First Amendment, and employment discrimination around the country for sixty years. The firm was responsible for the class action, Floyd v. City of New York, which successfully overturned the NYPD's decade-long unconstitutional stop-and-frisk policy. Other notable representations include the family of Eric Garner, members of the Exonerated Five, George Whitmore, and Rubin "Hurricane" Carter. In late 2021, BLH joined NYLPI in filing Baerga v. New York City, 21-CV-05762 (SDNY), a class action lawsuit to halt New York's practice of dispatching police to respond to mental health crises.

About White & Case LLP

White & Case LLPis one of the largest providers of pro bono legal services in the world. In the US, the Firm has achieved some transformative successes through its pro bono efforts. These include obtaining a US$27 million jury verdict on behalf of a client wrongfully imprisoned for 27 years, securing a US$4.5M settlement for thousands of individuals in a class action seeking compensation for thousands of people who alleged in the suit that the City of Ferguson, Missouri, routinely violated people's constitutional rights by jailing them in allegedly deplorable conditions without the necessary legal process, winning a precedent-setting US$30 million settlement to provide special education services for children exposed to lead-tainted water in Flint, Michigan, securing a US$4.5 billion increase in public school funding for students in New York State, and overturning the US military's "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy.

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