Family sues for release of body cam video, documents from Will County sheriff's police shooting in which young man, grandfather died
JOLIET, Ill. (CBS) -- A family has sued for the release of body cam video and other documents as they try to get to the bottom of what really happened when a young man and his grandfather died in an incident involving Will County Sheriff's police.
Sadie Mitchell and Rhonda Wells filed the lawsuit in Will County Circuit Court Monday. Wells' son and Mitchell's grandnephew, 21-year-old Jabbar Muhammad, was shot and killed by Will County Sheriff's police in his home in Joliet Township on Nov. 6 of last year. His grandfather and the family's patriarch, 70-year-old Eldred Wells Sr., also died.
FOIA Complaint by Adam Harrington on Scribd
The lawsuit said Muhammad was shot 10 or more times by sheriff's deputies, and Wells Sr. was also shot multiple times by deputies – including once in the back. The Will County Coroner's office determined both their deaths were homicides, the lawsuit said.
But in a news release, the Will County Sheriff's office reported that Muhammad was shot and killed while stabbing his grandfather to death – while no mention was made of Wells Sr. being shot by deputies.
The news release also did not mention that Muhammad was shot in the face multiple times, the lawsuit said.
The sheriff's deputies involved in the incident were wearing body cameras at the time, and the lawsuit said the cameras recorded the shooting and the deaths of Muhammad and Wells Sr. An investigator from the Will/Grundy Major Crimes Task Force is investigating, and said showing the body cam video to family would not interfere with its investigation, the lawsuit said.
But five months after the incident, the family has not been allowed to view the body camera video, the lawsuit said.
The lawsuit said the family filed an Illinois Freedom of Information Act request asking for disclosure of the body camera videos in this case both to the family and the public. That request was denied.
The denial as issued despite the fact that the Sheriff's office is not investigating the men's deaths, and the release of the body camera would not interfere with any investigation regardless, the lawsuit said.
The family also filed a FOIA request with the Will County Coroner's office for autopsy reports and other documents, which was also denied.
The lawsuit accused the Will County Sheriff's office and Sheriff Mike Kelley of failure to produce records and willful intention of FOIA. The Coroner's office and Coroner Lori H. Summers were accused of the same.
The lawsuit called for an order that the records be released, and also called for civil penalties. It was filed by attorney Ian M. Barney of Barney & Hourihane LLP.