Eric Garner Social Media Reaction to Verdict - News Update: Twitter Users Fuel Protests Following Daniel Pantaleo's Non-Indictment

Moments after a Staten Island Grand Jury chose not to indict NYPD Officer Daniel Pantaleo in the chokehold death of Eric Garner, social media users began flooding Twitter with remorse. Parallels were drawn between Garner’s case and that of Darren Wilson, the Ferguson officer found innocent of any wrongdoing in the death of teenager Michael Brown.

Hashtags such as #ICANTBREATHE and #BLACKLIVESMATTER sprang up immediately while #ERICGARNER reached more than 69,000 tweets per hour, according to Topsy. By Wednesday morning, Garner’s hashtag was still being mention about 18,000 times per hour. Condolences came from celebrities, Twitter users, and Brown’s attorney.

NYPD Chief of Community Affairs Joanne Jaffe tried to quell fears by assuring the public that the department is committed to rebuilding public trust.

Protests were in the planning staged by mid-afternoon Wednesday with many joining on Fergusonresponse.tumblr.com. “Now over 60 cities are holding protests for Eric Garner all over the country today (Thursday),” activist and author Shaun King posted to his Twitter page.

Waves of protests swept across the nation, including one that swept near Rockefeller Center’s annual Christmas tree lighting ceremony. Thousands gathered in midtown Manhattan chanting “hands up, don’t shoot” and “I can’t breathe.”

A bid has been made to release in Garner’s grand jury probe. Until then, many will share the sentiment shared by actor Dule Hill.