DA Thompson recommends no jail time for Peter Liang
The Brooklyn district attorney is recommending no jail time for former NYPD officer Peter Liang, who was convicted last month of manslaughter for fatally shooting Akai Gurley in the chest inside the stairwell of one of East New York’s Louis Pink Houses.
On Wednesday, March 23, District Attorney Ken Thompson issued his recommendation, contending, “Peter Liang was indicted, prosecuted and subsequently convicted by a jury because his reckless actions caused an innocent man to lose his life. There is no evidence, however, that he intended to kill or injure Akai Gurley.
“Because his incarceration is not necessary to protect the public, and due to the unique circumstances of this case, a prison sentence is not warranted,” Thompson said in the statement, noting that Liang has no prior criminal history and poses no future threat to public safety. “Justice will be best served if Mr. Liang is sentenced to five years of probation, with the condition that he serves six months of home confinement with electric monitoring and performs 500 hours of community service.”