A white police officer, Sgt. Joseph Chavalia, was charged with negligent homicide in the death of Tarika Wilson, 26, who, according to her family, was an unarmed, innocent bystander killed in a January SWAT raid, and negligent assault in the wounding of her 1-year-old son, Sincere, whose finger had to be amputated.

Chavalia pleaded not guilty to both misdemeanors. If convicted, he would face a maximum of eight months in jail.

According to an Associated Press article, the NAACP office in Lima, OH, said the charges should have been more serious:

“Any time a man shoots through a baby and kills an unarmed woman, and is charged with two misdemeanors, I think it would be an understatement to say that that’s unacceptable,” said Jason Upthegrove, Lima NAACP president.

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When Eliot Spitzer’s resignation took effect on Monday, David A. Paterson became New York’s first black governor, the fourth black governor in America’s history and America’s second blind governor.

Paterson was sworn in Monday afternoon as the state’s 55th governor. Check out the recap of the ceremony and an interactive timeline of Paterson’s life and career.

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