NEW YORK (AP) - The family of an unarmed black man killed by a police chokehold is set to meet with Department of Justice officials with the outcome of the high-profile federal investigation of the case still unknown, the department confirmed Tuesday.
Eric Garner's family said in a statement the closed-door meeting would take place Wednesday at a Brooklyn hotel.
"It's really just to update the family on the investigation," Garner family attorney Jonathan Moore said. "We're glad to hear they are still investigating, and when they finally look at all the evidence we think the outcome will be inescapable."
The family and civil rights advocates have been demanding federal authorities bring a federal case against white Officer Daniel Pantaleo since a state probe ended without charges against him. However, the Department of Justice indicated on Tuesday that no decision has been reached.
"As is common with an ongoing investigation, agents and prosecutors from the Department of Justice are meeting with the family of Eric Garner tomorrow," the department said in a statement. "There are no new major announcements regarding the matter."
Garner, who was accused of selling loose, untaxed cigarettes, was stopped by police on Staten Island in 2014 and refused to be handcuffed. Pantaleo is seen on a bystander's cellphone video putting Garner in an apparent chokehold, which is banned under New York Police Department policy.
The heavyset Garner, who had asthma, is heard gasping, "I can't breathe." He later was pronounced dead at a hospital.