Community Demands Answers After Fatal Shooting by Correction Officer

Residents of Jamaica, Queens, gathered at Public School 40 to demand answers after a state correction officer fatally shot 27-year-old Jason Nichols, who had escaped from a work-release program. The officer, Edwin Flores, was arraigned on manslaughter charges and released on $3,500 bail. Witnesses dispute the official account of the shooting, with many at the meeting expressing outrage and demanding to know why the officer was charged with manslaughter instead of murder.

Key Takeaways:

• Over 500 people attended the meeting at Public School 40, demanding answers from police officials and the State Department of Correctional Services.
• Witnesses dispute the official account of the shooting, claiming that Officer Flores pinned Jason Nichols to the ground with his knee and held a gun to his head.
• The officer, Edwin Flores, was charged with manslaughter and released on $3,500 bail.
• The lawyer for Officer Flores complained that his client was arrested prematurely, without waiting for a grand jury indictment.
• Interviews with witnesses led the District Attorney's office to file manslaughter charges against Officer Flores.
• Jason Nichols had been serving time for selling drugs in 1990 and was wanted for failing to report back to the Queensboro Correctional Facility on September 12.

Statistics:

• Over 500 people attended the meeting at Public School 40.
• Jason Nichols was 27 years old.
• Officer Edwin Flores has been a correction officer for six years and has been assigned to the unit that tracks down prisoners who escape from the work-release program since April 1993.
• Bail was set at $3,500 for Officer Flores.
• The shooting occurred on an unspecified date.

Sources:

• The New York Times, "Angry Crowd Demands Answers After Fatal Shooting by Correction Officer" (no date)
• The New York Times, "Manhunt Ends With a Shooting; Witnesses Describe Salvadoran Immigrant's Fatal Encounter with Police"