NEW YORK – New York Attorney General Letitia James’ Office of Special Investigation (OSI) today released its report on the death of Pedro Felix, who died on July 4, 2024 following an encounter with the New York City Police Department (NYPD) in Queens, New York. After a thorough investigation, which included review of footage from body-worn cameras, interviews with witnesses and involved officers, and comprehensive legal analysis, OSI concluded that a prosecutor would not be able to disprove beyond a reasonable doubt at trial that the officer’s actions were justified under New York law.
On the evening of July 4, NYPD officers responded to a report of an assault in progress involving a knife at an apartment in Queens. When officers arrived, they encountered Mr. Felix, who was engaged in a struggle with another man and had a knife in his hand. Officers repeatedly ordered Mr. Felix to drop the knife, but he did not comply. An officer discharged his service weapon, striking Mr. Felix. Mr. Felix was transported to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. Officers recovered two knives at the scene.
Officers also found an 8-year-old child in the apartment with stab wounds. The child was transported to a local hospital, where he died from his wounds. Two additional witnesses were treated for stab wounds and were discharged.
Under New York’s justification law, a police officer may use deadly physical force when the officer reasonably believes it to be necessary to defend against the use of deadly physical force by another. In this case, officers were responding to a report of an assault in progress. When officers arrived at the scene, bystanders informed them that a woman had come out of the apartment bleeding. When officers encountered Mr. Felix inside the apartment, he was holding another man in a headlock with a knife in his hand and ignored repeated demands to drop the weapon. Under these circumstances, given the law and the evidence, a prosecutor would not be able to disprove beyond a reasonable doubt at trial that the officer’s use of deadly physical force against Mr. Felix was justified, and therefore OSI determined that criminal charges would not be pursued in this matter.