The family of a Crown Heights man who was shot and killed by NYPD officers is filing a summons of complaint in the case, the first step in what their lawyer says will be a legal battle.

It's been one year since Saheed Vassell was shot and killed by officers. Police had received a report of a man threatening people with a gun, but it turned out to be a metal pipe. Vassell had bipolar disorder, according to his family.

Attorney General Letitia James declined to charge the officers involved in the shooting.

Scott Rynecki, the attorney for the Vassell family, says they are preparing a civil suit and a jury will decide how much money in damages the family could receive. He says it's not about the money, but about making the city safer.

A report from James' office recommended critical incident training for 911 operators and police dispatchers after the incident.

"When they distributed the information to the police department and EMS, they put this out as a firearm job, rather than putting it out as a possible gun," says Rynecki. "There was no definitive finding that anyone called in and said that this man had a gun."

Rynecki says they will have more information from the jury about the civil case within a month.