Family Of Man Shot Dead In Brooklyn Subway Station Calls For Justice

NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- The family of a man fatally shot in a Brooklyn subway station Tuesday wants to see a grand jury indict the retired correction officer who allegedly pulled the trigger.

William Groomes, 69, has not been charged with any crimes in the killing of Gilbert Drogheo, 32, on Tuesday in the Borough Hall station in downtown Brooklyn. The scuffle and subsequent shooting were all caught in exclusive CBS2 video.

"I don't think he should have shot my son like that," Linda Rodriguez, Drogheo's mother, told reporters, including CBS2's Valerie Castro. "He had no reason to shoot him like that. For a man to be so scared, why would you run after him and shoot him if you were so scared? I want justice for my son. That's all I want. I want this man to go to jail."

"We want justice for Gilbert ... by any means necessary, so we're calling on any witnesses or anybody that has any evidence to contact us, to contact the DA's office, because we want an open and full investigation," said the Rev. Kevin McCall of the National Action Network.

Rodriguez's emotional cry for justice may or may not be heard by the Brooklyn District Attorney's office.

Cellphone video captured Groomes walking through the station, searching for two men after he reportedly had a confrontation with them inside the No. 4 train. He is seen catching up to Drogheo before the two struggle, and the gun Groomes was carrying goes off.

While Groomes has not been charged with a crime, the other man allegedly involved in the quarrel has.

Drogheo's friend, Joscelyn Evering, 28, was arraigned Thursday morning. He is charged with two counts of assault and one count of menacing for physically shoving the retired officer on the train.

CBS2 showed the video to Eugene O'Donnell, a professor at the John Jay College of Criminal Justice.

"It's likely he would say that, 'I was in fear,'" O'Donnell said.

O'Donnell said even though Groomes fired the deadly shot, he'll likely claim he did it in self-defense.

"He's going to say that he tried to use physical force to hold him, and punched him," O'Donnell said.

The professor also said if there is an indictment, it will be tricky to prove.

"It will not be a slam dunk if there is any reasonable view of the evidence that he was defending his life or he was in fear, it will not be a slam dunk," O'Donnell said.

Evering's attorney said he has no criminal record. Bail was set at $1,500. His next court appearance is scheduled for March 17.

CBS2 also reached out to Groomes' attorney for comment, but has not yet heard back.