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CNN Live At Daybreak

Family Run Over: Advocate for the Victims Speaks Out

Aired August 21, 2001 - 08:26   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
CAROL LIN, CNN ANCHOR: A New York City police officer is speaking out for the first time since he was accused of plowing into a family while under the influence.

Officer Joseph Gray faces manslaughter charges in the deaths of a pregnant woman, her four-year-old son, and her teenage sister as they crossed a street earlier this month.

Gray called a news conference to apologize to the victims' families.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

JOSEPH GRAY, MANSLAUGHTER DEFENDANT: I think it's important that I, myself, express my sincerest condolences on behalf of myself and my family to the Pena and Herrera families.

It has been an absolute nightmare. It's -- I can't begin to describe how terrible that has made me feel, and what it has done to my family.

The people that know me, my friends, my family, my neighbors, they all know better. I just want people to, you know, not to believe everything that they read or see on TV. You know, I'm not this monster that they are portraying me to be.

Police officers are human too. You know, we are human beings. We have families. We have feelings, you know, to certain things. It's not fair to hold us to a higher standard. We are human beings.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIN: Well, this morning we are joined by a friend of the victims. David Galarza, is also an activist and critical of the New York Police Department.

Good morning, David.

DAVID GALARZA, VICTIMS' FRIEND: Good morning, Carol.

LIN: Well, clearly Officer Gray, you know, all accounts of what happened. It's a terrible, terrible thing. But Officer Gray clearly is a man in pain. You were there yesterday. Can you feel his pain? Do you understand what it was that he was trying to say to the family? GALARZA: I feel the pain of the Herrera and Pena families that lost four lives on that tragic night. Unfortunately, as we have seen in other police brutally cases and similar cases such as this one, the police department and the police officers accused of police misconduct usually fit into this pattern that try to portray themselves as the victimized. They try to get curry favor for them. They want people to feel sorry for them, when in fact, attention should be focused on the act that was committed.

Yes, Officer Gray was drunk. Yes, he was on his way to work. Yes, he killed four members of a family after he ran a red light while under the influence on his way to work. And we need to focus on that particular part of the deed, and also the overall institutional problem of the NYPD tolerating this kind of misconduct -- this kind of police behavior, whether it be drunk officers or wife beaters within their ranks.

LIN: David, as I said, you were there yesterday, and this was your reaction to what the officer had to say.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

GALARZA: You are a police officer! You are a murderer! You murdered four people! No bail for drunk killer cops! No bail for drunk killer cops! Have you no decency? Have you no decency? You killed four people! Have you expressed no remorse? You are going to go back to your family today. Victor Herrera will never have that chance. You killed four people!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This is over. Thank you.

GALARZA: It is over for that drunk killer cop and others like him!

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: You are trespassing here. Do you want to leave before I call the police?

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LIN: All right. That's enough.

David, did you represent the family in that action there?

GALARZA: No. I was not there as a representative of the family. I came there out of my own will. I came there out of my own anger and frustration with this particular process and the way it has coming to pass. Again...

LIN: So...

GALARZA: ... again, if anything the Latino community has learned from past cases like this -- cases of police misconduct or police abuse like the Anthony Baez case, Abner Louima, Amadou Diallo, is that these kinds patterns emerge where they try to get sympathy for these police officers and try to basically refocus attention away from the family and the victimization of the victims of this family and try to focus more like sympathy on this particular officer...

LIN: David...

GALARZA: ... and the crime that he committed.

LIN: ... then clarify something for me, because Officer Gray was off-duty at the time of this crash. He was acting as a private citizen. Why is it that you are holding the New York Police Department responsible?

GALARZA: Because, like they say, and as often as has been said by the family, including myself, we're not saying that all police officers are bad. We are saying that they are all silent. Had they -- if they have tolerated this behavior in the past, and clearly that's case, because he was not only drinking by himself throughout the whole day, but he was also drinking by the police precinct with some colleagues and also higher-ranking officers right next to the precinct. He had been drinking all day.

And yes, he was off duty. But he had over the double limit of alcohol in his system, and he was on his way to work. That means to me that for all indications, this probably wasn't his first time. He was probably not concerned about being busted by his superiors for engaging in this kind of behavior. And just for the simple fact that other officers on -- you know, were with him and had knew about -- known about this behavior in the past, about him having perhaps this history of drinking and driving, or drinking and being a police officer while on duty. Because of the simply fact that there's a blue wall of silence around this and other similar cases, such as this.

They all need to take a clear look at the institutionalization of this process that not only creates these kinds of officers and allows these kinds of crime to be committed on our communities and also just turns the other way basically, and it doesn't do anything to improve the situation.

LIN: David Galarza, indeed it appears that this case may very well be going to trial, and much will come out at that time.

We should note that Officer Gray is saying that he questions the police investigation of what happened at that Brooklyn intersection. And that Johnny Cochran is filing a claim with New York City claiming gross negligence by the department and Officer Gray.

Thank you very much, David Galarza.

GALARZA: Thank you.

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