After Mother Of Murder Victim Laments Lack Of Info From CPD, Mayor Lori Lightfoot Vows To Help
CHICAGO (CBS) -- In a heartbreaking exchange during today's City Council meeting, the mother of a young man who was shot and killed in Little Village this summer told the mayor and aldermen she hasn't received any information on the case from Chicago Police, prompting Mayor Lori Lightfoot to promise she would make sure someone gives her an update today.
During the public comment period at the start of today's City Council meeting, Catalina Andrade said her son was slain on July 18 near 24th and Washtenaw in Little Village, but to date "no one is giving me answers" on his case.
"Until this day, we have no information of what happened. It's just very sad that I have to go through all this pain, and nobody's giving me answers to what happened. There's city cameras, there's cameras on the businesses, and nobody's speaking up," Andrade said. "I'm asking the mayor and the City Council to get involved. I want justice for my son. … It's just so hard for me to even speak."
As Andrade choked up, Lightfoot weighed in -- which she rarely does during public comments at City Council meetings -- and promised to get her answers about her son's case.
"I am very very sorry for the loss of your son, and all of us who are parents, even that, we can't begin to imagine the pain that you are experiencing, but what we can do is we will get your contact information from the clerk, and I will make sure that someone from the Police Department calls you today to give you an update on the status of your son's case, and then I will ensure that they stay in regular contact with you," Lightfoot said.
Her voice still breaking, Andrade thanked the mayor for promising to help.
"I just want justice for my kid. I want justice for all our kids that's been murdered without no reason in the street. It's not only my son, it's very very many kids," she said. "I believe it's the gangs. I just think this needs to end. We need justice and we need peace in our communities. They can't be taking our kids like that. My son didn't do anything to them. He just did a wrong turn at the wrong street, and they took his life."
While Andrade did not mention her son's name as she spoke to the mayor and aldermen, Chicago Police and the Cook County Medical Examiner's office have said 18-year-old Miguel Rios was shot and killed on July 18 near 24th and Washtenaw. Police have said he was driving south on Washtenaw when someone shot him in the right armpit, causing him to crash into a tree. He was pronounced dead at the scene.
"We are very sorry for your loss, and for your pain, but we will make sure that, at a minimum, you are given information on a regular basis about the progress in your son's case. I commit that to you," Lightfoot told Andrade.