Erik Duran, an ex-New York City police sergeant convicted of manslaughter after he threw a cooler at a drug suspect who later died, was released from prison on bail Monday.
Duran was released from the Elmira Correctional Facility, a maximum security state prison in Chemung County, the New York Department of Corrections confirmed.
A state appeals court judge on Friday granted Duran’s bail, ruling he should not be imprisoned while appealing his conviction and 3-9 year prison sentence for the 2023 death of Eric Duprey in the Bronx.
Duran’s bail was set at $300,000 in February when the judge in his bench trial found him guilty of second-degree manslaughter and later issued the sentence, which defense attorneys vowed to appeal at the time.
Duran’s attorneys said they were “very pleased but not surprised that the Appellate Division found that there are legitimate appellate issues in Sgt. Duran’s case.”
Jonathan Roberts, the attorney for Duprey’s family, said in a statement the family was “deeply disappointed by the Appellate Division’s decision to grant bail pending appeal. While we respect the appellate process, this outcome reopens painful wounds for a family that has already endured an immense loss.”
Duprey allegedly sold drugs to an undercover officer in the Bronx in August 2023 and tried to flee on a motorized scooter. Video shows Duran hurled a picnic cooler at Duprey’s head, causing him to swerve and slide under a vehicle. Duprey was pronounced dead from blunt force trauma to the head.
Duran testified he had to act because Duprey was going to crash into officers. Prosecutors said it would have been more reasonable for him to yell “Look out!” or “Watch out!”
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