Attorney General James’ Office of Special Investigation Releases Report on Death of Christopher Ferguson

October 14, 2026

NEW YORK - New York Attorney General Letitia James' Office of Special Investigation (OSI) today released its report on the death of Christopher Ferguson, who died on December 5, 2024 following an encounter with members of the New York City Police Department (NYPD) in Brooklyn. After a thorough investigation, which included interviews with involved officers and civilian witnesses, review of body-worn camera (BWC) and dashboard camera footage and Automatic Vehicle Location (AVL) data, and comprehensive legal analysis, OSI determined that a prosecutor would not be able to disprove beyond a reasonable doubt at trial that the officers' actions were justified under New York law. Christopher

Shortly before 3 p.m. on December 5, NYPD officers received a ShotSpotter alert indicating a possible shooting at 81 North Portland Avenue in Brooklyn. Upon arrival at the scene, officers spoke to a witness who showed them a photo of the car involved in the incident.

At 3:11 p.m., NYPD officers observed the car in the photo traveling eastbound on Fulton Street toward Franklin Avenue and attempted to pull it over. The driver did not comply and instead drove several blocks at a high rate of speed until getting stuck in traffic at the intersection of Park Place and Utica Avenue. Mr. Ferguson was in the front passenger seat of the vehicle, and a three-year-old child was in the back seat.

With the car's way blocked by traffic, several NYPD officers got out of their police cars and approached the car on foot in front of 184 Utica Avenue.

As officers approached the vehicle, Mr. Ferguson and opened the front passenger door, holding a firearm pointed at an officer. The officer yelled, "gun," and discharged his service weapon. Another officer also fired his service weapon. Mr. Ferguson was struck and was taken to a local hospital, where he was pronounced dead. A loaded firearm with an extended magazine was recovered at the scene.

The child was not hurt during the incident. The driver sustained two gunshot wounds and other injuries after being tackled to the ground and handcuffed when she ran from the car. The driver was indicted by a grand jury on various charges in a case brought by the Kings County District Attorney's office.

Under New York's justification law, a person may use deadly physical force when the person reasonably believes it to be necessary to defend against the use of deadly physical force by another. In this case, Mr. Ferguson was in a car that had been identified as being used in a shooting minutes before the traffic stop. When officers attempted to stop the car, the driver fled and led the police on a high-speed pursuit that spanned several blocks and endangered numerous other motorists and pedestrians, only stopping when the car eventually got stuck in traffic. Mr. Ferguson pointed a gun directly at an officer as he tried to get out of the car, and two officers discharged their weapons in response. Under these circumstances, given the law and the evidence, a prosecutor would not be able to disprove beyond a reasonable doubt at trial that the officers' use of deadly physical force against Mr. Ferguson was justified. Further, OSI does not find that the officers recklessly injured the civilian driver when she was struck with two bullets during the interaction. Therefore, OSI determined that criminal charges would not be pursued in this matter.

In September 2025, Attorney General James issued a Notification of Investigative Findings regarding the investigation into the death of Christopher Ferguson.