NEW YORK — A disciplinary process began on Tuesday a New York City police lieutenant who fatally shot a man during a traffic stop in 2019.
Lt. Jonathan Rivera is accused of shooting Allan Feliz in the chest during the incident. Rivera was a sergeant at the time.
Last year, the Civilian Complaint Review Board substantiated the firing charges to the lieutenant.
Allan Feliz fatally shot by NYPD Sergeant in the Bronx
On October 17, 2019, Feliz was stopped in the Bronx by then-officer Edward Barrett, who believed Feliz was not wearing a seat belt. That turned out to be the case, but Barrett asked him to get out of the car, and when he showed his ID next to Rivera and then-officer Michelle Almanzar, they discovered warrants for his arrest.
In court, Barrett, Almanzar and Rivera all testified that Feliz jumped back into the car to try to drive away.
Rivera testified that he gave several commands and then bagged Feliz from the passenger side of the car, but that did not deter him.
With one door still open and the two officers standing next to it, Rivera told the court he was concerned that “serious bodily harm or death could occur if [Feliz] put him in drive and moved the vehicle.” He then fatally shot Feliz in the chest.
When the CCRB attorney asked, “Did you intend to shoot to kill?” He replied, “No, to stop the power.”
Police-worn body camera of the tense traffic stop was repeated repeatedly in court.
Relatives demand that lieutenant be fired
Feliz, then the father of a 6-month-old child, had been released on parole, and investigators later found drugs in his pocket and traces of meth in his system.
Feliz’s mother asks that Rivera be fired. Lawyers alongside her claim this is the result of racial profiling.
“These officers are literally using the excuse that … it was okay for them to hit, grope and kill Allan Feliz because of spitting and littering tickets,” said Loyda Colon, executive director of the Judiciary Committee.
“His excuse is that his partners were a risk. That’s a lie,” said Sammy Feliz, Allan Feliz’s brother.
“You have a portrait of someone who was murdered because he had warrants for his arrest and disobeyed the police,” said attorney Jumaane Williams.
The CCRB ruled in 2023 that Rivera’s use of force was inappropriate, which an expert witness spoke in court.
“Mr. Feliz put our officers in a very difficult position. You know, if he had just complied, there wouldn’t have been any problems,” said Lt. Lou Turoc, president of the Lieutenants Benevolent Association.
A representative from the mayor’s office referred CBS News New York to the NYPD, and an NYPD representative said that once this process is over, a recommendation will be made to the police commissioner and his decision will then be made public.
The trial will resume Wednesday morning with another witness.
Lisa Rozner
