Father of 19-year-old killed by Chicago Police: Officer knew 'he had messed up'
The father of a 19-year-old man shot fatally by a Chicago Police officer Saturday morning said the cop knew he messed up after firing at the man and a 55-year-old neighbor who also was killed on the West Side.
Antonio LeGrier told the Chicago Sun-Times he saw the white or Hispanic officer standing on the grass 30 feet from the bodies after he heard the gunshots in the 4700 block of West Erie Street.
F, no, no, no. I thought he was lunging at me with the [baseball] bat, LeGrier said the officer yelled following the shooting that claimed the lives of college student Quintonio LeGrier and Bettie R. Jones.
In my opinion, he knew he had messed up. It was senseless, Antonio LeGrier, 47, said of the dark-haired officer who had fired.
He knew he had shot blindly, recklessly into the doorway and now two people are dead because of it.
Coming barely a month after a white officer was charged with murdering 17-year-old Laquan McDonald last year, Saturday mornings shooting that killed two African-Americans increased the pressure already on the police and Mayor Rahm Emanuel.
After learning of the double fatality, and the shooting and wounding of another man later in the day by Chicago Police, Emanuel issued a statement:
Anytime an officer uses force the public deserves answers, and regardless of the circumstances, we all grieve anytime there is a loss of life in our city. With that in mind, I have been informed that the Independent Police Review Authority has opened investigations into each shooting, and that all evidence will be shared with the Cook County States Attorneys Office for additional review in the days ahead.
CPD issued a statement Saturday saying officers involved in the shooting the statement did not give a precise number will be placed on routine administrative duties for a period of 30 days. It noted the policy, implemented by interim Supt. John Escalante, will be the new protocol for all police-involved shootings.
That statement also extended condolences for the shooting of Jones and pledged the departments full cooperation with the investigation by the Independent Police Review Authority.
Responding officers, according to the statement, were confronted by a combative subject resulting in the discharging of the officers weapon which fatally wounded two individuals. The 55 year old female victim was accidentally struck and tragically killed. The department extends its deepest condolences to the victims family and friends.
The elder LeGrier said his son was home for the holiday break from Northern Illinois University, where he majored in electrical engineering technology.
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The younger LeGrier, who had been in foster care since he was four years old, was brought Friday morning by his mother to the building on Erie that his father owns, Antonio LeGrier said. The father said he invited his son to a family holiday gathering, but he chose to stay in the second-floor unit where his father lives.
Quintonio LeGriers mother, Janet Cooksey, said she was angry with police and wanted a personal apology from the mayor.
When is this going to stop? said Cooksey, who last saw her son on Friday. My son wasnt a thug on the street or a violent person.
Because of psychological issues, Cooksey said he could become hyper and a little loud at times.
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Antonio LeGrier said his son tried to bust the door open, but he kept him from breaking it down and called for police.
Soon, there was silence.
Antonio LeGrier said he then called Jones, who lived a floor below. He said he warned her, My son is a little irate. Do not open the door unless the police arrive.
Antonio LeGrier said Jones told him she saw his son outside with a baseball bat.
When police arrived, Antonio LeGrier said he heard Bettie R. Jones yell, Whoa, Whoa, Whoa!
Antonio LeGrier had reached the third step, as he made his way down from the second floor, when he heard the gunshots.
I identified myself as the father and I held my hands out, Antonio LeGrier said.
He said he then saw his son and Jones lying in the foyer. Antonio LeGrier said Quintonio LeGrier was still alive but Jones was not moving.
My son had some emotional problems. Did it warrant him getting shot and killed? I dont believe it, Antonio LeGrier said.
Antonio LeGrier said he has since spoken with police and the Independent Police Review Authority as well as two civil-right lawyers. Police had told him that his son was shot seven times and had called 911 before he did.
Officers responded to a call of a domestic disturbance, according to a statement from the Chicago Police Office of News Affairs.
Upon arrival, officers were confronted by a combative subject resulting in the discharging of the officers weapon, fatally wounding two individuals, the statement read.
Jones was pronounced dead at Loretto Hospital at 4:51 a.m., the Cook County Medical Examiners office said. LeGrier was pronounced dead at Stroger Hospital at 5:14 am.
Neighbors said Jones was shot in the neck soon after she opened the door for police.
Jones daughter Latisha Jones said she woke up when she heard three gunshots. She walked to the front door and saw her mother bleeding on the ground, she said.
She wasnt saying anything, Latisha Jones said, who added that she could feel her mother breathing before she was taken away by paramedics.
Latisha Jones said that police shot her mother from outside the home after she opened the door.
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As other family members nodded, she said, Dont open the door when the Chicago Police come. Dont even call. They come to kill. Serve and protect? They should take that off their car and put, We kill. Go to Iraq and fight. Serve in war, instead of this marshal law.
Antonio LeGrier and Glover-Jennings noted that some other homes on the blocks have security cameras that might have recorded the shooting.
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Theyre idiots, Hatch said of the police. All the spotlight on them and they shoot up this place? These people are out of control.