Judge: No mistrial in Peter Liang case, sentencing set for April 19

Peter Liang and his defense team will wait until April 19 for sentencing.

THE JUDGE in the case of former NYPD officer Peter Liang ruled today (April 14) that his defense team failed to prove that a juror's withholding of information was grounds for a mistrial.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Earlier versions of this post was written before the judge's decision today. It has been updated to reflect the changing situation.

That means that the Liang's conviction stands and the sentencing, which was supposed to happen yesterday (April 13) will go ahead on Tuesday, April 19, said Supreme Court Justice Danny Chun. 

While waiting for the original sentencing date, it was discovered that Juror Michael Vargas, 62, failed to mention during jury questioning his dad served prison time for accidentally killing someone.

Vargas was questioned April 13 by Liang’s attorney Paul Shectman in the New York courtroom of Judge Danny Chun.

The juror said he was estranged from his father, didn’t really have a relationship with him and didn’t know for certain that he served time.

RELATED: Liang case: Justice is not a black-and-white issue

Vargas countered with a Facebook post from Vargas in January of a picture of him as a child with his father.

The defense also shared numerous antipolice posts on Vargas' Facebook, such as “America, wake up” or “Are the police a legal gang?”


Liang faces up to 15 years in prison for fatally shooting the unarmed Akai Gurley in a New York project's stairwell in 2014. Last month, Brooklyn District Attorney Kenneth Thompson recommended he be sentenced to five years’s probation, including six months’ house arrest.

The case has pitted the Asian/American supporters of Liang against the Black Lives Matters activists who demanded justice for Gurley. It has also divided members of the AAPI community between Liang sympathizers who feel he was being scapegoated by the justice system, and others who agree with Gurley's family and supporters demanding justice and Liang's conviction.

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