New York City Council will hold an oversight hearing in September on a police department review of its training procedures.

The review comes after Eric Garner, an unarmed Staten Island man, died after being placed in a chokehold while police attempted to arrest him on suspicion of selling untaxed cigarettes. His arrest was recorded on a cell phone video that showed Garner telling officers, "I can't breathe! I can't breathe." Two police officers involved in the incident are on modified duty.

The city medical examiner this month cited the chokehold and compression of his chest as the cause of Garner's death, calling it a homicide. Chokeholds have been prohibited by the Police Department since 1992.

At a press conference after Garner's death, Police Commissioner Bill Bratton said he'd already ordered a top-to-bottom review of all NYPD training. Bratton has agreed to give an update to the city during the council hearing.

"The New York City Police Department is embarking on an ambitious program to re-train all 35,000 officers, so this hearing will be a critical way to openly discuss their methodology and procedures," Melissa Mark-Viverito, speaker of the City Council, told the Associated Press. "The City Council takes its oversight role very seriously, and we expect to have a thorough and substantive hearing that will be informative to New Yorkers."

The Staten Island District Attorney appointed a special grand jury Aug. 19 to begin an investigation into the case and to decide whether to hand out indictments for those involved.

The DA's announcement came ahead of a large rally in Staten Island on Saturday, Aug. 23, organized by the Rev Al. Sharpton, where 2,500 people joined the March for Justice for Eric Garner demanding criminal charges be made against the officers involved, and to recognize others killed by police, like St. Louis teenager Michael Brown.

Many community activists, six New York congressional lawmakers and the Rev Al. Sharpton think there can't be a fair trial in the Garner case, as the DA has too close a relationship with police; they have demanded a federal investigation.

Criminal defense and civil rights attorney Ron Kuby told Latin Post that under criminal law of the State of New York, the police officer that killed Garner can be tried for a variety of different homicides.

"In this case, the charge that would fit most precisely is second degree manslaughter, or criminally reckless homicide or reckless manslaughter. That is to say when one acts with a conscious disregard of a known death and death results, you're guilty of second degree manslaughter. That carries a maximum sentence of five to fifty years in prison, and no minimum penalty. There is a lesser charge, criminally negligent homicide, far less serious, but it is a felony," said Kuby.

He added, "Much of that type of conduct also can be prosecuted under federal law, in this case because these were police officers, because they were acting with the authority of the state, of the city, they can be held liable for criminal violation of the federal civil rights code. And in this case what would have to be proven in federal court is that the officer in question intentionally used excessive force in arresting Eric Garner, and if you can prove that beyond a reasonable doubt and prove that death resulted, and in this case it did, a longer term of imprisonment would result."

Several questions remain. Community activists have demanded Bratton step down and for an end to his "broken windows" policing policy. According to the theory, broken windows in a neighborhood are symptoms of petty crime, and if police do not intervene aggressively to prevent them, crime will escalate.

It was this theory that Bratton put into practice when he became NYPD Commissioner under Mayor Rudolph Giuliani. It led to zero tolerance policies for petty offenses and the implementation of the "stop-and-frisk" practice of physical searches of individuals with little to no probable cause. Arrests for panhandling, turnstile jumping, and vandalism increased, as did complaints of police brutality.

For communities of color, "broken windows" is a continuation of NYPD's stop-question-and-frisk, which was found by a New York federal court to unfairly target blacks and Latinos.

Former law enforcement officials have spoken out about management and supervisors not holding police officers accountable for violating policies and procedures. At a press conference last month, organized by 100 Blacks in Law Enforcement Who Care, they said some officers are treated differently than others, which makes a good officer's job even worse.

"The question comes up, 'What is the police commissioner going to do about it? What is the Mayor going to do about it?' A strong message should be sent throughout the department saying if you are caught with these heinous acts that you will be disciplined, suspended on the spot and you'll be brought up on criminal charges if necessary. This is the message that needs to be sent out. Not just to the uniformed officers but to the wider community that you will not be brutalized by cops," said Chairperson Charles Billups, Grand Council of the Guardians, Inc.

He added, "I hate to say it, but if it was a black officer that done it, if it was a Hispanic or Latino officer that done it -- they would have been brought up on charges. They would have criminal charges and they would have been disciplined to the fullest."

So the larger question remains how to hold police accountable. Often it is left to the court jurors to decide whether to indict, call a mistrial, or deliver a verdict. And the Civilian Complaint Review Board has a history of not finding fault with the police department.

Kuby said there is only way to hold police accountable for crimes they commit against the citizenry. "That is through an independent statewide prosecutor for police misconduct. We used to have independent statewide and citywide prosecutors for police corruption and they were very effective, but apparently stealing a bag of cocaine is considered more serious than stealing the life of an African-American. That's the only way you will get police accountability, because local district attorneys are locally elected, they frequently rely on many of the same police officers who are investigating other police officers, and they are very reluctant as a rule to second guess the police involving line of duty killings. Sometimes they won't even present the case to a grand jury."

The City Council hearing is scheduled for Sept. 8.