Chicago police officer charged with illegally tasing man who fell to the ground, breaking his nose
CHICAGO (CBS) -- A Chicago police officer is facing felony charges, accused of illegally using his Taser on a man he confronted while responding to a call of a person pulling on gates in the Dunning neighborhood in August 2021.
Officer Marco Simonetti, 58, has been charged with one count of aggravated battery and one count of official misconduct. He faces up to 5 years in prison for each count, if convicted.
On Aug. 7, 2021, shortly after 11 a.m., Simonetti was on duty when he responded to a call of a suspicious person pulling on gates in the 3500 block of North Normandy Avenue, according to Cook County prosecutors.
When he arrived at the scene, the person who called 911 pointed out the man who had been pulling on the gates, and was then sitting on a nearby porch.
As the officer was getting out of his vehicle, that man -- identified in court records as Joshua Habasek-Bonelli -- walked up to Officer Simonetti and said he had done nothing wrong. When Simonetti asked Habasek-Bonelli for ID or a key to prove he lived in that house, Habasek-Bonelli said he didn't have a key on him, and the officer threatened to "lock [him] up" for lying to him, according to prosecutors.
Habasek-Bonelli continued to insist he lived in the house and told the officer, "You can't go into my house," before Simonetti asked him to walk to the house to see who was home, then asked him to put his hands on the squad car, prosecutors said.
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Habasek-Bonelli complied, and Simonetti removed a cell phone and plastic bag from the man's pockets, placing them on top of the squad car. Habasek-Bonelli continued to deny doing anything wrong, and as Simonetti grabbed his wrist, the man asked, "Why are you arresting me?" according to prosecutors.
Simonetti denied he was arresting the Habasek-Bonelli, who began to run toward his house. The officer chased him, threatening to use his Taser, and telling him to get on the ground, according to prosecutors.
After Habasek-Bonelli stopped and put his hands up, backing onto the sidewalk, the officer kept shouting at him to get on the ground, threatening to shock him with his Taser. As Habasek-Bonelli began crouching, standing back up, and crouching again, insisting again he had done nothing wrong, the officer shouted, "I'm going to tase you, last warning."
As Habasek-Bonelli bent toward the ground, asked Simonetti not to tase him, and reached toward the ground in front of him, the officer fired his Taser. One of the Taser's prongs hit Habasek-Bonelli in the arm, and the other hit him in the forehead, causing him to fall face-forward onto the sidewalk, injuring his head and face, according to prosecutors.
Habasek-Bonelli began bleeding and convulsing, temporarily losing consciousness, prosecutors said.
When paramedics showed up, they took him to the hospital, where he was treated for injuries to his head and face, including a broken nose and a cut that required stitches, according to prosecutors.
The entire incident was caught on the officer's body camera, including when he called in on his radio, claiming, "I had to tase him."
Prosecutors said Simonetti later filed a police report claiming he "unintentionally deployed the taser," according to prosecutors.
Simonetti has been a Chicago police officer since 1994, and is currently a field training officer. He was relieved of his police powers on Wednesday, prosecutors said.
His bail was set at $5,000 on Thursday, and a judge ordered him not to have any contact with the victim if he is released. He also is not allowed to carry a gun, and must surrender his Firearm Owner's Identification card and any firearms. He is due back in court on Oct. 31.
Foutris said he is now filing a civil complaint against the City of Chicago and Simonetti.
"This man is a field training officer. This police officer has been training other police officers to do their jobs," Foutris said. "So it begs the question – has he been training them, and what has he been training them?"
A CBS 2 review found Simonetti has faced 11 misconduct complaints during his career, including 9 complaints regarding the use of force – one involving the use of his Taser against a 30-year-old Hispanic man in 2013.
One misconduct complaint, regarding a vehicle licensing issue, was sustained in 1996, resulting in a reprimand. No disciplinary action was taken against him regarding any of the use of force complaints.
Police Supt. David Brown said the Internal Affairs Bureau investigation that led to the charges is ongoing.
"Generally, we don't respond to ongoing investigations from employment circumstances. So what I will say, we're in process of relief of power, because he was arrested; and that the investigation will obviously be ongoing, and conclude with, at some point, some recommendation for ultimately discipling the officer," Brown said.