New York City police officer charged with strangulation after using banned chokehold

A New York City police officer has been arrested on charges of strangulation and attempted strangulation after he was filmed placing a man in a banned chokehold manoeuvre, according to officials.

Officer David Afanador was filmed near Rockaway Beach on Sunday wrapping his arms around a man as he lay face down on the boardwalk after being tackled by officers.

State lawmakers banned law enforcement chokeholds with the passage of the Eric Garner Anti-Chokehold Act, named after the Staten Island man who was killed in custody in 2014, and whose last words "I can't breathe" have resonated in global protests against police violence.

Sunday's incident followed just days after the New York City Council passed legislation making chokeholds a criminal offence.

A statewide police reform package passed by Governor Andrew Cuomo earlier this month also allows felony charges against officers using a chokehold to injure or kill a person in custody.

Mr Afanado is the second NYPD officer to face criminal charges this month. Vincent D'Andraia was arrested and charged with misdemeanour assault after shoving a woman to the ground during a police brutality protest. She was hospitalised with a concussion.

Since joining the NYPD in 2005, Mr Afanador has been under Civilian Complaint Review Board investigation at least eight times, including for using excessive force for placing another person in a chokehold in 2010.

He also was acquitted on criminal charges for reportedly beating and pistol-whipping a 16-year-old boy in 2014.

Mr Afanador and three other officers were on the scene in the arrest of Ricky Bellevue on 21 June.

Mr Bellevue was arrested for disorderly conduct and resisting arrest after he was reportedly mocking and taunting officers. Queens District Attorney Melinda Katz refused to prosecute Mr Bellevue.

In a statement following Mr Afanador's arrest, she said: "Police officers are entrusted to serve and protect — and the conduct alleged here cannot be tolerated. This police officer is now a defendant and is accused of using a chokehold, a manoeuvre we know has been lethal. This office has zero tolerance for police misconduct."

Several jurisdictions across the US have sought sweeping police reforms following demonstrations demanding justice in the wake of the police killings of black Americans, which have continued for weeks after the Memorial Day killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.

President Donald Trump also signed an executive order urging police departments to ban chokeholds, except in cases where officers feel their life is endangered, which is often a defence used by police to justify use of force against people in custody.

Law enforcement in some of the largest US cities already forbid officers from using chokeholds, though criminal justice advocates say a lack of accountability measures has prevented bans from actually working, as complaints against officers for use of force have continued to pile up.