New York Attorney General Letitia James’ Office of Special Investigation (OSI) has released its findings on the death of Win Rozario, who died after an encounter with New York City Police Department (NYPD) officers in Queens on March 27, 2024. The investigation included analysis of body-worn camera footage, ballistics reports, crime scene evidence, 911 call recordings, police radio dispatches, interviews with the involved officers and a medical examiner, as well as legal review.
According to the OSI report, two NYPD officers responded to a house in Queens at 1:49 p.m. following a 911 call about an individual “on drugs” and acting erratically. The investigation determined that Mr. Rozario had made the call himself. When officers arrived and entered the residence’s second-floor apartment, they encountered Mr. Rozario and his mother near the kitchen entrance.
At approximately 1:53 p.m., Mr. Rozario took a pair of scissors from a kitchen drawer and advanced toward the officers while his mother tried to restrain him. Officers retreated into the living room as one deployed a Taser. After Mr. Rozario’s mother managed to take away the scissors but remained nearby despite repeated commands from police to move aside, she eventually put down the scissors and stepped back when ordered not to interfere.
Mr. Rozario was then struck by another Taser round but removed one prong from his shoulder before picking up the scissors again and advancing toward an officer. One officer fired his service weapon at Mr. Rozario as he approached; during a struggle involving his family members attempting to disarm him or intervene, additional shots were fired by both responding officers after further commands for Mr. Rozario to drop the scissors went unheeded.
In total, five gunshots were fired by police within about ninety seconds after Mr. Rozario first armed himself with scissors; he was struck five times before falling to the floor at approximately 1:55 p.m., according to investigators.
After being handcuffed on the ground by police—who began chest compressions while calling for emergency medical services—Mr. Rozario was transported to a local hospital where he was pronounced dead.
The OSI cited New York law allowing police use of deadly force if they reasonably believe it necessary for self-defense against deadly physical force—including threats posed by sharp objects such as knives or scissors—and concluded that prosecutors could not disprove beyond reasonable doubt that officers’ actions were justified under these circumstances.
“The reasonableness of the officers’ fear that Mr. Rozario would come at them again with the scissors cannot be disproved beyond a reasonable doubt,” stated OSI in its report.
As such, criminal charges will not be pursued against either officer involved in this incident.
The OSI also reviewed NYPD’s Crisis Intervention Training (CIT) materials regarding encounters with emotionally disturbed persons (EDP), finding no specific protocols for mental health referrals or support resources available for responding officers at that time.
Additionally, investigators examined citywide mental health response programs including B-HEARD (Behavioral Health Emergency Assistance Response Division), which deploys paramedics and mental health professionals instead of police during certain emergencies but was unavailable in Mr. Rozario’s precinct at the time—and would have been ineligible regardless due to substance use being reported on initial calls per program guidelines set by the Mayor’s Office of Community Mental Health. Other mobile treatment teams either no longer operated or did not apply under these circumstances.
Based on these findings, OSI recommended expanding B-HEARD coverage across all precincts and hours; broadening eligibility criteria—including drug- or alcohol-induced crises; permitting co-response alongside police where appropriate; and equipping NYPD personnel with guidance for requesting such assistance once scenes are secure for non-police responders.
Further recommendations include training all NYPD officers about B-HEARD co-responses—what information should be collected for mental health teams—and providing tools for evaluating when co-response is suitable based on situational safety assessments.
Finally, OSI called upon state lawmakers and Governor Kathy Hochul to enact Daniel’s Law—a proposal creating non-police crisis response teams comprised of EMTs along with peers or family members—to ensure public health-based responses statewide when individuals experience mental health or substance-related emergencies rather than defaulting solely to law enforcement intervention.
Disciplinary investigations concerning excessive force remain outside OSI’s remit; those matters are handled independently by the Civilian Complaint Review Board (CCRB), which is currently prosecuting disciplinary cases related to this incident.
