COPA releases video of police shooting that left man paralyzed on Chicago's Near West Side
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The Civilian Office of Police Accountability has released video of a police shooting that left a man paralyzed on the Near West Side back in 2022.
The chain of events unfolded in the 2100 block of West Adams Street on the afternoon of Aug. 12, 2022.
Officers saw a man with a gun on a POD camera, and conducted a traffic stop on a vehicle in which they said they saw a man armed with a handgun. At that point, an officer fired his weapon and struck the man in the car.
The video released by COPA Thursday shows Officer Fernando Ruiz jump out of his squad car and immediately start shooting.
The man in the car, Raymond Comer, 38, is now paralyzed from the waist down.
Police said Comer was reaching for a gun, but Comer said both his hands were on the wheel.
Comer later pleaded guilty to a gun charge in the case. He is now suing the City of Chicago and Officer Ruiz for excessive use of force.
Eight months after the shooting in which Comer was wounded, Officer Ruiz was involved in another incident—in which he shot and killed Reginald Clay Jr. during a foot chase on Flournoy Street near Independence Boulevard on the West Side.
The Chicago Police Board has recommended Ruiz be fired for his actions in the Clay case.