What you need to know about the Eric Garner chokehold case

What's happened?

Eric Garner, a US citizen, died of a heart attack after being put in an outlawed chokehold by a New York Police Department officer in July.

The 43-year-old suffered from asthma and in a distressing video of his arrest, he can be heard shouting "I can't breathe!" several times as he is aggressively manhandled by officers.

Warning: This video contains distressing footage

What has the public reaction been?

The news was met with disbelief by many in the US. Thousands of people marched across New York with dozens reportedly arrested.

"I can't breathe" has become a favoured chant of protesters, in a similar way that protesters in Ferguson have used the reported final exchange between Michael Brown and the police officer who shot him - "Hands up. Don't shoot".

There is a growing feeling of distrust towards the police in the US, especially among the African-American community in light of yet another death of an unarmed black man at the hands of a white police officer - mirroring the recent similar deaths of Brown and Tamir Rice.

The police response to Garner's apparent asthma attack has also been criticised. With the help of a second eyewitness video Harry Siegel of the New York Daily Newsassesses in detail the police response and concludes that Garner was "treated like a piece of meat" and implores anyone who doesn't understand the growing distrust of police to "put your politics down, open your eyes and watch the videos".

What has been said?

Although he did not directly address the Eric Garner case, president Barack Obama admitted:

The concern on the part of too many minority communities is that law enforcement is not working with them and dealing with them in a fair way.

• Barack Obama

New York mayor Bill de Blasio meanwhile said the grand jury decision was "one that many in our city did not want" and appealed for a "peaceful, constructive" response. The mayor also pointed towards the city's programme to retrain all of its police officers "to reduce the use of excessive force".

The problem of police-community relations and civil rights is not just an issue for people of color – or young people – or people who get stopped by police. This is a fundamental issue for every American who cares about justice.

• Bill de Blasio, New York mayor

The Garner family lawyer said he was "astonished" by the decision while Mr Garner's wife Esaw was adamant that her husband's death would not be in vain.

Through the Patrolmen's Benevolent Association, police officer Daniel Pantaleo released a statement:

I became a police officer to help people and to protect those who can’t protect themselves. It is never my intention to harm anyone and I feel very bad about the death of Mr Garner. My family and I include him and his family in our prayers and I hope that they will accept my personal condolences for their loss.

• Daniel Pantaleo

Meanwhile...

Not everyone in the US has been sympathetic to the protests.

NBC's decision to continue the live coverage of its Christmas special from the Rockefeller Centre in Manhattan instead of the mass protests that were going on all around, was met with derision...

Elsewhere, a couple in New York appeared to mock the death of Garner by imitating a stranglehold behind a news reporter on live television.

And one columnist for the New York Post has written a quite astonishing article that explains "Eric Garner was a victim of himself".

More: Fox News clearly has its priorities in order regarding the Eric Garner case

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