3 men denied bond in shooting of off-duty Chicago police officer outside bar in Beverly
CHICAGO (CBS)-- Three men have been ordered held without bond in the shooting of an off-duty Chicago police officer outside of a bar in Beverly.
Demitrius Harrell, 28, Bryant Hayes, 22, and Justen Krismantis, 22, are all charged in the shooting that paralyzed Officer Daniel Golden, 32, early Saturday morning. A flood of Chicago Police officers packed the courtroom for the suspects' bond hearing.
Hayes and Krismantis were charged with attempted murder, aggravated battery with a firearm, and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, while Harrell was charged with aggravated discharge of a firearm and two weapons counts.
As CBS 2 Investigator Megan Hickey reported, surveillance vide both inside and outside the bar showed Officer Golden was not part of the bar fight that preceded the shooting – but was rather just trying to help by breaking it up.
But Golden ended up being shot. A bullet hit his spine and remains lodged in his lung.
"His life changed in a snap of a finger," said Liam Hopkins, a friend of Officer Golden's, "and what he's done for seven years - he protects this community in the city. He selflessly takes himself into action, and he's there debriefing, and all he does is love what he does every day is law enforcement."
Golden's younger brother was also shot.
In a proffer, Assistant Cook County State's Attorney's James Murphy reported that in the early morning hours Saturday, the three men traveled in two cars to the area of 104th Street and Artesian Avenue in the Beverly community. Krismantis was driving a dark-colored Jeep with Harrell as a passenger, while Hayes was driving a Mercedes, prosecutors said.
The men parked their cars on 104th Street just west of Artesian Avenue – a residential area, and walked about half a block to Brewbakers bar, 10350 S. Western Ave.
Surveillance video shows each man presenting his ID at the door and entering Brwebakers, and then leaving a short time later, prosecutors said. They went on to Sean's Rhino Bar & Grill, at 10330 S. Western Ave. a short distance to the north, which they entered at 2:23 a.m., prosecutors said.
Officer Golden and his 24-year-old brother were inside Sean's Rhino Bar at the time, prosecutors said. Family said Golden, who is a third-generation Chicago Police Officer and a U.S. Army veteran, was out with friends and family at the bar.
Shortly after the three defendants walked into the bar, a quarrel erupted between them and several other people in the bar – though not Golden, prosecutors said. The quarrel escalated into a physical fight that spilled out of the door onto Western Avenue, prosecutors said.
Golden was seen leaving the bar after all three defendants, prosecutors said. Outside, surveillance video shows Hayes in the middle of the street with several other people approaching him – and then Hayes running off south on Western Avenue with a few people chasing him, prosecutors said.
Several people were seen trying to break up the fight, including Golden, who restrained someone trying to go after Hayes on Western Avenue, prosecutors said.
Surveillance video goes on to show all three defendants running south on Western Avenue toward 104th Street while others chase them. Krismantis and Hayes make a right turn before 104th Street and runs through a parking lot toward Artesian Avenue while still being chased, and Harrell later goes in the same direction, prosecutors said.
Golden is seen walking alongside Harrell in the same direction, but they are not fighting or quarreling, prosecutors said.
The defendants then reached the area back near 104th Street and Artesian Avenue, where a witness who had been at the bar is seen in a struggle with Hayes. The witness said he was trying to stop Hayes from fleeing because he thought Hayes had knocked out somebody on Western Avenue, prosecutors said.
The two men are seen rolling around on the ground before the witness stops struggling with Hayes, prosecutors said.
Meanwhile, Krismantis is seen running to his car, while saying, "I am going to my car!" Witnesses interpreted that to mean he was going to get a weapon, prosecutors said.
Krismantis then goes to his car, opens the passenger side door, and reaches in before going back to the corner of 104th Street and Artesian Avenue, prosecutors said.
While Krismantis is running to his car, Hayes is seen walking in the street and holding his jacket, prosecutors said. By this time, the fighting is over.
The three defendants reassemble – still with nobody fighting by this point and everyone else starting to walk away – and Krismantis hands a gun to Hayes, prosecutors said.
Hayes then goes on to fire an automatic weapon at Officer Golden, his brother, and others, prosecutors said. The gun pumps out bursts of several bullets at once.
The audio of the gunfire was also picked up by a nearby doorbell surveillance camera.
Golden suffered a gunshot wound to the middle of his back, while his brother was shot in the leg, prosecutors said.
A total of 19 40-caliber shell casings were recovered at the scene.
Afterward, video shows Krismantis running back to the two cars the group parked earlier. Harrell is seen walking from the street toward the two cars, at which point Hayes gives him the gun, prosecutors said.
Harrell then fired the gun himself at the victims and witnesses down the block. A total of three 400-caliber shell casings were recovered from that scene.
After that, the three men got into their two parked cars and left, prosecutors said.
Officer Golden was rushed to Advocate Christ Medical Center for treatment. The bullet lacerated his lung, and family said it missed his heart by millimeters. Due to its proximity to Golden's heart and lung, it cannot be removed.
"They could have killed more people," Hopkins said. "He saved people, and he's the one person who has to live with this for the rest of his life."
As a result of the injury, Officer Golden is permanently paralyzed from the waist down.
"He was shot in the back by these cowards. He's paralyzed," said Ald. Matt O'Shea (19th). "He's getting married next year, and he won't be able to walk down the aisle."
Meanwhile, prosecutors said after leaving the scene, the defendants began sending text messages to each other. The text messages corroborate that Krismantis did get a gun from his car, and also showed the defendants joking about everything that had happened, prosecutors said.
One text read, "Let's get drunk this weekend and start a bar fight," while another read, "The s**t was fun they beat my ass too," prosecutors said.
Investigators were able to track the Jeep back to Krismantis, who was arrested later on Saturday. Harrell was spotted coming out of a residence in southwest suburban Chicago Ridge on Monday and was also arrested, and Hayes was arrested on Saturday.
Hayes is also facing addition weapons charges stemming from the incident in which he was arrested.
At 6:41 p.m. Saturday near 327 Des Plaines Ave. in Forest Park, police were called to apprehend Hayes as a suspect in the shooting, prosecutors said. He was seen exiting a residence and walking to a Mercedes, where he took something believed to be a gun out of his waistband and threw it on the floorboard of the car, prosecutors said.
Officers approached Hayes, who ran off but ended up getting caught, prosecutors said. A Ruger 40-caliber firearm with a 30-round extended magazine was recovered, prosecutors said. Hayes does have a Firearm Owners Identification Card, but not a valid Concealed Carry License, prosecutors said.
All three defendants have prior criminal records.
Krismantis pleaded guilty in Kankakee County on Sept. 1 of last year to domestic battery. Hayes was on supervision for misdemeanor fleeing and eluding police and illegal marijuana charges in the western suburbs.
Harrell was sentenced to three years in prison on a weapons charge in 2018. He was also sentenced to participate in a Treatment Accountability for Safer Communities program for residential burglary, but violated his probation and was sentenced to four years in prison for that crime in 2014.
Harrell was also convicted of bank robbery in federal court in 2018 and was sentenced to three years and 10 months in prison. He was placed on parole on March 15, 2021.
'If he weren't there, who knows what would have happened?'
CBS 2's Charlie De Mar talked with Officer Golden's fiancée, Casey Szaflarski, on Tuesday evening. Szaflarski said Officer Golden celebrated his 32nd birthday inside the hospital on Monday, surrounded by friends and family.
Whether it was jumping rope with kids during patrol or shooting hoops on the block, it's hard to find a video or picture of Officer Golden without a smile.
"I just feel like he's really left a mark on a lot of people," Szaflarski said. "It just sucks this happened to someone this good, but we still have him here and that's all that matters."
Szaflarski has been at Officer Golden's side at the hospital.
"He just does not want this thing to be portrayed as, you know, a bar fight," she said, "because he's not that person - and if he wasn't there, who knows what would have happened?"
Szaflarski emphasized the severity of her fiancé's injuries.
"His spine is completely severed, and that's what caused the paralyzation. It happened instantly; he could immediately not feel his legs," Szaflarski said. "Thankfully, it was just one (shot), but you know, that one changed his life forever. He saved lives."
Now, Golden battles an unknown road to recovery, but with a strong will.
"His mind is so strong - it's just unbelievable," Szaflarski said. "It's his neighborhood, and he wanted to protect everybody - and he did."
Officer Golden's family and the 19th Ward office are asking the community to support the officer and his fiancée -- to help with all the medical bills, transportation, and all other related expenses they will face.
You can find a GoFundMe for Officer Golden here.
A prayer vigil is also being setup for 6:30 p.m. Thursday at St. Rita High School, 7740 S. Western Ave.