Chicago police say that officers stopped the stolen Jaguar convertible Thursday evening in the city’s South Shore neighborhood and were exiting their own vehicle when the driver sped away, sideswiping a squad auto and a parked vehicle in the process.
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O’Neal, of the 1700 block of East 70th Street, was positively identified Friday evening, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office. The two of the officers involved in the shooting have been relieved from their police powers and been suspended.
The move comes as Chicago Police face harsh criticism for past police-involved shootings, including the 16-shot slaying of teenager Laquan McDonald, a shooting caught on a squad auto dash-cam camera that led to angry protests in the streets. Two police vehicles were blocking O’Neal during the stop, when the teen sideswiped a squad auto and civilian vehicle parked nearby, WLS reported. Escalante says the officers fired, hitting O’Neal who later pronounced dead at a hospital.
Although the incident remains under investigation, “it appears that departmental policies may have been violated by at least 2 of the police officers”, Guglielmi said in a statement.
Under department policy, the officers were placed on 30 days’ administrative duty. The vehicle sideswiped a squad auto and also hit a auto parked on the street, he said. Chicago Police First Deputy Superintendent John Escalante says the driver of the Jaguar, identified as O’Neal, then put the vehicle in drive, sideswiping a squad auto and a parked vehicle.
Officers then fired their service weapons, according to police. Among questions needing answering: Why the officers opened fire and who stole the Jaguar. The Chicago Tribune said that a man pushed O’Neal’s sister, Briana Adams, during the rally as she quietly asked people to respect her brother; officers rushed to the scene, said the newspaper.
A top Chicago police official says the department has “quite a few questions” after officers shot and killed a suspect in a stolen vehicle investigation.
The shooting happened about 7:30 p.m.in the 7400 block of South Merrill, where officers tried to pull over a Jaguar convertible that had been reported stolen earlier in the day from southwest suburban Bolingbrook, Guglielmi said.
The other person in the auto, a 17-year-old boy, was arrested and charged with a felony count of possession of a stolen vehicle, police said Saturday.
The statement did not say a gun was recovered. The Independent Police Review Authority will review the footage and determine if the shooting was justified. Members of the Independent Police Review Authority were also on the scene.
Escalante said the investigation could take some time. “It’s going to take a while to be able to view after downloading all the body camera footage as well as the in-car camera footage and whatever other video may be found during the canvass”.
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Escalante did not take reporters’ questions.
