daniel prude

Ibram X. Kendi, best-selling author and anti-racist activist, addressed recent pain and anger in Rochester over the Daniel Prude investigation during a talk on Wednesday night.

The author of "How to Be an Antiracist" gave a virtual talk as part of the University of Rochester’s 20th annual Martin Luther King Jr. Commemorative Address.

Kendi commented on this week’s announcement that a grand jury will not indict the Rochester police officers involved in the incident last year where Daniel Prude suffocated and later died.

During her visit to Rochester Tuesday, State Attorney General Tish James said she intends to push for a law changing how communities respond to mental health calls. The measure, Daniel’s Law, was authored by Assemblyman Harry Bronson and State Sen. Samra Brouk. 

Brouk said the measure was inspired by a series of community conversations and discussions with Bronson about Daniel Prude’s death. 

Rochester Police Chief Cynthia Herriott-Sullivan is pleased with the way the protests -- over the lack of a grand jury indictment in connection with the Daniel Prude case -- proceeded on Tuesday night.

Herriott-Sullivan said that the protesters handled themselves well, and there were no injuries and no arrests.

"When people are peacefully protesting and no laws are being violated, and nobody’s getting hurt, our response is minimal, there’s nothing for us to do," Herriott-Sullivan said. "I enjoyed seeing that people were able to protest and get their points across."

The decision by a grand jury not to indict Rochester Police officers involved in the incident last March that eventually led to the death of Daniel Prude brought hundreds of protesters to different parts of the city on Tuesday night.

It started with speeches by activists and a gathering on Jefferson Avenue, where so many other protests started out last year. Jefferson Avenue is where Prude was pinned to the pavement by police after they responded to the reports of a man acting erratically. Prude suffocated after being held down by officers, and he died a week later.

The leader of the United Christian Leadership Ministry in Rochester is reacting to a grand jury’s decision not to indict the officers involved in the incident a year ago that led to the death of Daniel Prude.

Reverend Lewis Stewart said that, “Many of us are really angry about this because it shows the little value that some police officers place on human life.”

A number of area officials and legislators are reacting to the decision by a grand jury not to indict RPD officers in connection with the death of Daniel Prude last year:

Statement from Mayor Lovely Warren regarding the NYS Attorney General’s conclusion of its investigation into the death of Daniel Prude:

None of the police officers responsible for Daniel Prude's death will face criminal charges in his killing, Attorney General Letitia James announced Tuesday, explaining that the grand jury empaneled to hear her case against the seven officers declined to indict them.

The attorney general spoke at Aenon Baptist Church on Genesee Street, a few blocks from the intersection of Jefferson Avenue where Prude was suffocated on March 23 by three officers -- Mark Vaughn, Francisco Santiago, and Troy Taladay.