The law firm representing the family of a 13-year-old who was shot and killed by a Utica police officer in June 2024 has filed a federal civil rights lawsuit in the case.
The suit, filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of New York, alleges Utica police officer Patrick Husnay used unjustified deadly force in the encounter with Nyah Mway. It also claims the city of Utica engaged in reckless hiring, training and oversight practices.
Attorneys for the family allege Mway was walking home with a friend on June 28 of last year when three uniformed Utica Police Department officers stopped him for jaywalking and insisted he be searched. Attorneys say Mway then ran because he had no prior experience with police.
Police say Mway displayed what appeared to be a handgun, but was later revealed to be a pellet gun. That's when attorneys say officer Bryce Patterson tackled Mway to the ground and began punching him. It was at this point that the lawsuit claims Husnay shot Mway in the chest.
Police say Mway, a refugee born in Myanmar, was taken to a nearby hospital where he was pronounced dead. They say the pellet gun was found on the ground nearby.
New York Attorney General Letitia James’ office reviewed body-worn camera and civilian cell phone footage from the incident, and conducted interviews. It found the officer’s actions were justified under the law and the department was cleared of any wrongdoing.
“Nyah should have finished his freshman year of high school this month," said attorney Julia Kuan. "Officer Husnay’s unjustifiable use of deadly force snuffed out this child’s potential and the aspirations of his entire family and community.”
In addition to alleging the use of unjustified deadly force and reckless hiring, training and supervision by the city, the lawsuit details claims under the U.S. Constitution, the New York Constitution and common law, including:
- Excessive force in violation of the Fourth and Fourteenth amendments
- Assault and battery
- Violations of the New York Constitution
The family is seeking compensatory and punitive damages.
“The last year has been terrible," said Chris Sunderlin, an advocate for the Mway family. "There’s been silence from nearly everyone. Our leadership is absent."
Sunderlin says the family wants accountability.
“All three of the officers were honored this year with exemplary service awards. They weren’t supposed to be working,” said Sunderlin.
“We have done our own independent investigation and we do believe there is a strong basis for civil liability for Officer Husnay for using excessive and reckless force,” said Hafsa S. Mansoor, an associate at Emery Celli Brinkerhoff Abady Ward Ward & Maazel LLP, a law firm that focuses on civil rights, commercial, criminal and ethics matters.
She says the primary goal is to get justice for the family.
“A boy’s life has ended far too soon," Mansoor said. "A family has been torn apart and a community is grieving."
While officers have asserted the incident occurred quickly and that the pellet gun Mway was in possession of looked very much like a handgun, Mansoor says that does not justify him losing his life.
“[His] full body weight is on top of Nyah Mway," Mansoor said. "He’s had him restrained with one hand. He’s got the opportunity to land multiple blows. This is a chance to already have fully restarted him [and] to have knocked that toy gun out Nyah Mway’s hand. It is at that moment when Nyah Mway is not a threat to anyone. He was completely restrained. Officer Husnay then runs up and puts a bullet directly into Nyah Mway."
Spectrum News 1 has reached out to the Utica Police Department for comment, but it says they will not comment on the lawsuit.