A New York City agency that investigates police misconduct has found that the officer who put his arm around the neck of Eric Garner before his death did use a chokehold and restricted Mr. Garner’s breathing, a person familiar with the case said on Friday.

The findings, reported earlier Friday by Rolling Stone, represent an oversight body’s first formal attempt to seek discipline for the officer, Daniel Pantaleo, in the three years since Mr. Garner died as a result of the violent arrest on a Staten Island sidewalk. But the disciplinary process will now enter another standstill because the Police Department says it will not hold an administrative trial on the allegations until the United States Department of Justice decides whether the officers involved in the case violated Mr. Garner’s civil rights.

The city agency, the Civilian Complaint Review Board, recommended the stiffest punishment against Officer Pantaleo: departmental charges that could lead to suspension or dismissal. Officer Pantaleo was notified of the recommendation last week. The person familiar with the case requested anonymity to speak about confidential disciplinary matters.

Mr. Garner, 43, was standing outside a beauty supply shop in July 2014 when Officer Pantaleo and his partner, Justin Damico, confronted Mr. Garner and accused him of selling untaxed cigarettes. A cellphone camera held by a friend of Mr. Garner recorded Officer Pantaleo using a chokehold, a tactic prohibited by the Police Department, to subdue him.