The Rev. Al Sharpton successfully petitioned Rep. Jerry Nadler (D-NY) on Tuesday to schedule congressional hearings on police misconduct and social justice in the wake of federal prosecutors’ decision not to bring charges in the death of Eric Garner.
The announcement was made by a Sharpton spokeswoman following a day spent meeting with Capitol Hill lawmakers alongside Garner’s mother, Gwen Carr.
“Rev. Sharpton is hopeful with Congressman Nadler’s agreement to convene a congressional hearing that a measure of justice will be achieved and that the country will be forced to put a real lens on the travesty of justice from the mishandling of this case and others,” said the spokeswoman, Rachel Noerdlinger.
The office for Nadler, the head of the House Judiciary Committee, did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but Sharpton revealed in a tweet that the hearing will take place in the fall.
Other Democratic movers and shakers with whom Sharpton and Carr met Tuesday include presidential hopefuls Cory Booker (NJ) and Kamala Harris (Calif.), as well as rising firebrands Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (NY) and Ilhan Omar (Minn.).
The action came one week after federal prosecutors announced that they would not pursue charges against NYPD Officer Daniel Pantaleo, who in July 2014 tried to arrest Garner for selling loose cigarettes but instead got into a physical altercation that ended with Garner’s death.