Lawyer: Officer in Eric Garner case wants to keep his job

NEW YORK – A lawyer for the New York City police officer accused of using a banned chokehold in the killing of Eric Garner says his client wants to keep his job.

Officer Daniel Pantaleo’s attorney, Stuart London, said Thursday that the officer hopes to be cleared of administrative charges, so he can stay on the force.

The remarks came after the close of a disciplinary hearing where police-oversight prosecutors said the officer should be fired.

The 43-year-old Garner died during an arrest on Staten Island on July 17, 2014. Pantaleo is seen in a widely watched cellphone video putting Garner in an apparent chokehold that’s banned by the NYPD.

Garner’s dying words, “I can’t breathe,” became a rallying cry for the Black Lives Matter movement.