Black Lives Matter demands max sentence for 'Cooler Cop' NYPD Sgt. Erik Duran

Sheetal Banchariya and Thomas Tracy, New York Daily News on Apr 7, 2026

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

NEW YORK — Black Lives Matter activists on Tuesday demanded the maximum prison sentence for “Cooler Cop” NYPD Sgt. Erik Duran, who killed a fleeing suspect by hurling a cooler at him following a Bronx buy-and-bust operation.

A small group of activists, including BLM of Greater New York co-founders Hawk Newsome and his sister Chivona Newsome, gathered outside Bronx Supreme Court to push for the max of 15 years behind bars when Duran goes before Judge Guy Mitchell on Thursday.

Duran was convicted of manslaughter in February following a non-jury trial in the 2023 death of 30-year-old Eric Duprey. He’s facing between five and 15 years in prison and has already been fired by the NYPD.

The activists planned to visit the offices of seven local elected officials Tuesday, including Bronx Borough President Venessa Gibson, demanding they file letters to the court supporting the maximum sentence for Duran.

“Bronx politicians are committing a crime against humanity by remaining silent in the ‘Cooler Killer’ trial,” Chivona Newsome said. “Duran … experienced the privilege of not being remanded. He will not experience the privilege of not going to jail for killing Eric Duprey.”

“These were the same politicians that was marching for George Floyd, for Eric Gardner,” she continued. “Now they remain silent.”

The push came a day after attorneys for Duran presented the judge with a petition signed by more than 11,000 law enforcement officers from around the globe requesting no jail time for the narcotics cop.

He was speeding down the sidewalk, about to crash into a group of officers, when Duran, in an attempt to stop Duprey, lifted the cooler loaded with ice and drinks and, using both hands, hurled it at the suspect.

Duprey, who wasn’t wearing a helmet, lost control, sideswiped a tree, and was thrown off the scooter. He struck his head on the curb and landed under a parked vehicle.

In the petition, officers said Duran shouldn’t be punished for making a split-second decision cops are forced to make every day.

“Stripping him of his freedom will send a message to every single police officer throughout the country,” Vincent Vallelong, the president of the NYPD’s Sergeant’s Benevolent Association, which put together the petition, told The News. “He did his job. He did the same thing every police officer would do in that situation. After this, every cop is going to be worried if their next decision is going to cost them their freedom.”

On Thursday, Duprey’s family will “ask only that the sentence reflect the gravity of what was done,” his family’s attorney Jonathan Roberts said in a statement.

“The justice system is supposed to protect all New Yorkers. It should treat the loss of Eric’s life with the seriousness that it deserves.”

_____