NEW You can now listen to Fox News articles! A former New York City police officer, convicted of manslaughter in the August 2023 death of 30-year-old Eric Duprey, was sentenced Thursday to three to nine years in prison for throwing a picnic cooler filled with ice and drinks at the fleeing suspect. Critics argue the ruling could deter officers from making split-second decisions in critical situations. Erik Duran, 38, received the sentence from a judge. Duran insisted he was attempting to shield fellow officers from Duprey, who was riding a motorized scooter at the time of his fatal crash. The ex-NYPD officer is the first to receive a prison sentence for an on-duty death in at least 20 years. “I took this job to save lives.” “I felt awful after witnessing Eric Duprey’s crash,” Duran said to Bronx Judge Guy Mitchell. NYPD OFFICER JONATHAN DILLER’S WIDOW BREAKS DOWN IN TEARS AS CROWD OF POLICE PACKS COURTROOM FOR SUSPECTED COP KILLER’S HOMICIDE TRIAL. The judge argued that Thursday’s sentence would deter other officers from acting recklessly. He dismissed Duran’s claim that his actions were justified, ruling that the former officer hurled the cooler out of anger over Duprey’s escape. “They had enough to investigate and apprehend him another day,” Mitchell remarked about the police. The difference is that the family will never see the deceased again. Duran chose to have Mitchell, rather than a jury, decide the case.
