More Eric Garner protests planned; Poll shows New Yorkers unhappy with grand jury decision

NEW YORK (WABC) -- On the eve of the march in Washington, D.C., over the Eric Garner case, among others, several protests planned in our area Friday.

The NYPD bracing for demonstrators as a new poll is released showing many New Yorker's disagree with the grand jury's decision not to indict officer Daniel Pantaleo.

According to the poll, conducted by the New York Times/Siena College, nearly two-thirds of New York City adults, black and white, believe that the Staten Island grand jury should have brought criminal charges and also believes that the federal government should charge the officer in federal court with violating Garner's civil rights.

Two-thirds of New York City adults feel that people of color are treated unfairly by the criminal justice system.

Meanwhile, church leaders made their protest in song on the steps of City Hall in the early evening.

"And so we are here to speak up and speak out for justice and for righteousness for our community," said the Rev. Patrick Young, of the First Baptist Church in Elmhurst.

The poll shows most new yorkers believe race relations in the city are badly strained, that the mayor really hasn't helped much and that the city is headed in the wrong direction.

"There is something inherently wrong when a man accused of causing the death of another man is not punished or made to face a jury," Public Advocate Letitia James said.

Protesters say they''ll continue demonstrating until they see real change. For example, having special prosecutors handling police misconduct cases instead of district attorneys. They also want big changes in the police department, and that's where there is a big divide among black and white New Yorkers.

Approximately two-thirds 67 percent of white New Yorkers grade the NYPD's performance as positive, but 76 percent of blacks in the city give police a negative job performance.

"We, as a community of people, do not feel that our interests are held in the same regard as people who are not in communities of color," said Bishop James Clark, of Christ Temple Church in Harlem.