After four years of his shooting, the death of an 18-year-old teenager has not yet been given the justice it deserves. This is what prompted the parents of Ramarley Graham to seek help from the Mayor of New York City to get justice for their son.
Along with Ramarley's parents were his relatives and friends. The mother of another man killed by police in 2014 has also joined the Grahams. The group rallied outside the City Hall seeking for help in having the shooter fired from his job as a police officer.
Ramarley's mom, Constance Malcolm, spoke in behalf of the group and addressed the mayor. "Mayor de Blasio, we are calling upon you today. As a father of a black boy also, this should touch you. Because this could be Dante." Malcolm referred to the 18-year-old biracial son of the mayor.
According to the parents of Ramarley, they already waited too long for their son to get justice. At the time of his death, Ramarley was only 18. He was in the bathroom of his own home when he was shot during a drug investigation. The person liable for pulling the trigger on Ramarley was a white police officer named Richard Haste.
After the incident occurred, Haste was charged with manslaughter. The case was later dismissed by a judge on a legal technicality. A second grand jury cleared Haste of the charges filed against him since police officials claimed Haste thought Ramarley was armed. Despite his action, Haste continues his job as a police officer. An internal disciplinary case has been stalled as an investigation headed by the US Justice Department continues to this day.
Ramarley's parents have written a letter to Mayor Bill de Blasio and wife Chirlane McCray to finally take action in firing Haste. Before elected into office, de Blasio told Frank Graham (the father of the slain teen) that his son's death "shouldn't have happened." Now that he is mayor, Graham says that de Blasio should be "a man of his word" since he has a chance to do something about it.
