Dueling Views of Eric Garner's Autopsy

While a grand jury investigates the death of Eric Garner behind closed doors, the police union and attorneys for Garner's family are squaring off over the medical examiner's autopsy — positioning themselves not just for a possible criminal case, but also a possible civil lawsuit.

The Garner family's civil attorney on Friday brought in renowned medical examiner Dr. Michael Baden to review the city's autopsy. After four hours inside the medical examiner's office, Baden said he agreed with the city's ruling that the death was a homicide caused, in part, by a chokehold. He said the results showed neck compression was a contributing factor.

But minutes later, the president of the Patrolmen's Benevolent Association, Patrick Lynch, arrived to say that this finding does not necessarily point to a chokehold. Lynch said the compression could have been caused by life-saving measures such as CPR or intubation. Lynch said the union has not had a chance to review the autopsy report and evidence. But the union is hoping for such access.