Newburgh council reviews Marcus Burks death in closed session

The Newburgh City Council met in executive session to review Marcus Burks’ death, moving a fatal police-custody case into the city’s legal and political arena just months after the January 1 encounter on State Route 17K. The closed-door discussion came as the family pressed for answers, the state Attorney General’s Office advanced its investigation, and city officials tried to balance transparency against a pending claim.

The New York State Attorney General’s Office of Special Investigation opened a formal probe on April 17 after first conducting a preliminary assessment. In its account, the incident began at 10:32 p.m. on January 1, when a state trooper tried to stop Burks in Newburgh for a nonworking headlight. The attorney general said Burks allegedly did not stop, continued at high speed, later crashed, got out of the car and was restrained by officers who used pepper spray and at least one Taser.

The City of Newburgh said its council met on May 4 to review preliminary information related to a notice of claim filed in the matter. The city also said it had launched its own internal investigation in parallel with the Attorney General’s Office and that the police department was cooperating fully. Mayor Torrance Harvey said the case remained under investigation, underscoring how little the city was prepared to say publicly while the inquiry continued.

At the center of the dispute is the autopsy. The Orange County medical examiner’s report, as summarized by media outlets, listed Burks’ cause of death as cardiopulmonary arrest during law enforcement subdual, including prone restraint and use of capsaicin spray and a conducted electrical device. The report also listed obesity as a contributing factor. Burks was 39.

Family members said they were first told Burks died in a traffic accident and that city police were not involved. Michael Sussman, the family’s attorney, said body-camera footage showed Burks repeatedly saying, “I can’t breathe,” while he was restrained. Sussman also described the autopsy findings as a homicide. Burks’ father, Malcolm Burks, has publicly called for transparency and the truth.

For Newburgh, the stakes now extend beyond one family’s loss. The council’s closed session, the notice of claim and the state investigation all point to a broader question of what residents will learn, when they will learn it, and how the city handles accountability after a death involving both local and state law enforcement.