In the wake of a Staten Island grand jury's failure to indict New York police officer Daniel Pantaleo in the death of Eric Garner, mayor Bill de Blasio has announced the initiation of a retraining program for the entire New York City police force.

Eric Garner died as a result of neck compression from a chokehold that is banned by the New York City Police Department.

Bill de Blasio spoke on Wednesday night about the personal feelings he had tied with the grand jury's decision not to indict officer Panteleo, bringing up the painful talks he and his wife Chirlane have had with their black teenage son, Dante, whom they have cautioned on how to behave when encountering the police.

"I've had to worry over the years, Chirlane has had to worry: Is Dante safe each night?" said mayor de Blasio, as quoted in an AP article.

"And not just from some of the painful realities of crime and violence in some of our neighborhoods," he continued, “but safe from the very people they want to have faith in as their protectors."

“People need to know that black lives and brown lives matter as much as white lives,” said de Blasio.

Police Commissioner William J. Bratton, as reported in the New York Times, has stated that the retraining program which will begin this month would require some 22,000 officers to complete a three-day course which will include "de-escalation” techniques. The program is modeled on the periodic required firearms retraining that all officers must undergo on a regular basis.

Following a night of protests over the grand jury declining to indict officer Pantaleo, Eric Holder, the U.S. Attorney General, has promised a full investigation into the officer's role in the choking death of the 43-year-old man.

According to Reuters, a departmental investigation will most likely focus on whether Pantaleo indeed employed a chokehold that is banned by New York Police Department.