That hope has led some to question Mr. Brown's motives in dropping or reducing charges against several police officers accused in the death of a car-theft suspect during the suspect's arrest in February.

B3 Queens prosecutors acted improperly and erroneously in a grand jury investigation that led to a manslaughter charge against the last police officer charged in the death of a car-theft suspect, a judge ruled.

Within minutes, the two officers and three colleagues were grappling with a car-theft suspect, Federico Pereira, a 21-year-old cook in a fast-food restaurant with a history of convictions on theft and drug charges.

The teen-age car-theft suspect who was shot in a confrontation with the police two months ago has told investigators that he saw a uniformed officer fire his weapon, his lawyer said today.

B1 Four New York City police officers, accused in the death of a car-theft suspect, had the charges thrown out by a judge at the request of the new Queens District Attorney.

While he visited a relative in Ipanema, a police officer and a car-theft suspect were shot to death on the avenue below.

The Queens District Attorney said yesterday that he would press ahead with his prosecution of five police officers charged with killing a car-theft suspect even though new problems with evidence kept cropping up.

A lawyer representing one of five New York City police officers charged in the death of a car-theft suspect in Queens has asked that the murder charge against his client be dismissed.

The bullets that killed a car-theft suspect outside a Staten Island pool hall on Tuesday night did not come from the gun carried by a man arrested minutes after the shooting, the police said yesterday.

A car-theft suspect with whom some of the officers were struggling died of asphyxiation, and three witnesses came forward to say he was kicked and beaten.