Overview
- Opening statements described a heavy, drink-filled cooler thrown at Eric Duprey as an unnecessary use of force to salvage a faltering arrest operation.
- The defense argued Sgt. Erik Duran faced a split-second, life-or-death decision as Duprey rode a scooter on the sidewalk at high speed toward people.
- Bronx Justice Guy Mitchell will decide the case without a jury after the sergeant pleaded not guilty to manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, and assault.
- Prosecutors cite surveillance video and an autopsy finding of blunt-force head trauma to link the throw to Duprey’s death, a claim the defense contests.
- The incident occurred during an August 2023 drug bust in the Bronx; Duran was suspended without pay and later placed on modified duty, and he faces up to 25 years if convicted.