Crime and Courts

Off-Duty NYPD Officer Charged With Murder in Friend's Death

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An off-duty New York City police officer was charged Thursday with murder in the shooting death of a longtime friend on Long Island.

The state attorney general's office charged officer Errick Allen after investigating the May 12 shooting under its authority to review killings of unarmed civilians by law enforcement officers.

Allen was arraigned Thursday and ordered jailed pending a court hearing next Tuesday. He faces a maximum sentence of 25 years to life in prison if convicted.

Messages seeking comment were left with Allen's lawyer and the NYPD. The police officers union, the Police Benevolent Association, declined comment.

Authorities say Allen, a first-year officer, shot 25-year-old Christopher Curro in front of a house in Farmingdale. The police department suspended him for 30 days without pay after the shooting.

Nassau Police Commissioner Patrick Ryder said Allen pulled out a gun and shot Curro, a friend since childhood, as they engaged in a struggle.

Attorney General Letitia James said in a statement: “We trust our police officers to protect the safety of New Yorkers, but instead, this individual allegedly betrayed that duty to end another man’s life."

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