By Ivan Pereira
Thursday, December 24, 2009
There may have been a few road bumps on the way, but the family of Sean Bell rejoiced Monday after a largely supportive City Council voted to rename the street where he was gunned down by police.
The Council approved by a vote of 42-5 a bill to rename 70 streets in New York, including the area of Liverpool Street between 94th Avenue and 101st Street, where Bell, 23, was killed in a hail of 50 police bullets on the day he was going to marry his high school sweetheart.
Nicole Paultre-Bell told the Council “Sean Bell Way” would serve as a reminder to Queens residents about the incident that changed her life and the community forever.
“Finally, there is some form of justice,” she told reporters after the vote. “When a child walks down the block, they’ll ask who Sean Bell is.”
The bridegroom was killed on the corner during the early morning hours of Nov. 25, 2006, after he and his friends left a bachelor party at the now-defunct Kalua Cabaret. The strip club was being investigated by undercover police officers for illegal prostitution and drugs.
Some of the officers thought Bell or one of his two friends, Joseph Guzman and Trent Benefield, had a gun and was going to use it during an argument outside the club. When they approached Bell’s car at the intersection in an unmarked van, the bridegroom rammed the police car and five officers opened fire.
Bell was killed while Guzman and Benefield were seriously wounded and arrested, but none of the men had a weapon. The incident led to mass protests and scrutiny of the NYPD over its undercover tactics.
Three of the officers who fired the 50 shots were indicted on manslaughter and reckless endangerment charges, but were exonerated in a bench trial last year.
There were several opponents of the controversial street renaming both in and out of City Hall. Councilman Peter Vallone (D-Astoria), who was one of the five Council members to vote no on the bill, contended Bell did not do anything to improve the neighborhood and was not innocent.
“Two wrongs don’t make a right, and they certainly don’t count for a street renaming,” he said.
But the large number of supporters of the bill, which also renamed a Floral Park street in honor of a mother who was killed in a accidental explosion in April, claimed Bell’s death was a significant piece of history in the borough and changed the way the authorities investigate crimes.
The NYPD has made several changes to its policies in light of the shooting, including mandated alcohol testing of officers, training on how to handle working in inner city neighborhoods and a shutdown of the undercover gang unit.
The department was also ordered by a Manhattan Supreme Court judge Monday to release statistics showing the racial background of suspects who have been shot by police over the last two decades, following a lawsuit by the American Civil Liberties Union.
“This is important to do, because no matter what you think, what happened to Sean Bell and his friends cannot be forgotten,” said Councilman John Liu (D-Flushing).
The bill had run through some interference before, when approval from Community Board 12 approval was delayed due to a late letter of support from Councilman Thomas White (D-South Ozone Park).
Detectives Endowment Association President Michael Palladino also criticized the street renaming, calling it an attack against the NYPD. He added that Bell had been arrested before on alleged drug charges and hit the unmarked car before he was shot.
“Street renamings are reserved for those who have made a positive contribution to the city and society,” he said.
Council Speaker Christine Quinn (D-Manhattan) and other supporting Council members said the vote was not an affront against the police.
“It is an attempt to remember an event that we should not forget,” Quinn said.
