A man hit in the elbow when police fatally shot the Empire State Building gunman is now suing the city, saying police should have received better training.
Robert Asika was one of nine hurt on Aug. 24 — the day Jeffrey Johnson killed a former coworker outside the Empire State Building before being shot to death by police. Police reportedly fired 16 rounds at Johnson.
But, many of those rounds reportedly hit bystanders, including Asika, who filed a notice of intent to sue the city, The Village Voice reported Friday.
"We believe that there were too many rounds fired under the circumstances, and perhaps there should be more of an exploration of whether these officers had the proper training," Asika's lawyer Michael Lamonsoff told The Village Voice, adding that his client is still receiving medical attention and might have a neurological impairment now.
While Lamonsoff doesn't deny the officers had a right to defend themselves against Johnson, who reportedly pulled a gun on police but never fired, he does question whether police took things too far.
"Until the investigation is over, we should all take pause: sixteen shots were fired and we have nine injured civilians," Lamonsoff told The Village Voice. "This could be a warning sign that maybe the training of police officers in the discharge of their firearms is not extensive enough."
Asika is the first of the nine injured bystanders to announce plans to sue.
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