Witness Account Raises Questions About Fatal Police Shooting
CHICAGO (CBS) -- CBS 2 has learned that the federal investigation into the Chicago Police Department will include the two police shootings this past weekend, one of which left a 19-year-old man and 55-year-old woman dead.
CBS 2's Derrick Blakley reports an eyewitness account of the police shooting that claimed the lives of those two West Garfield Park residents raises new questions about what caused police to open fire.
Marco Mercado lives just next door to the scene of the fatal shootings, and he says from his living room window he saw the officer fire seven shots from the sidewalk at around 4:30 a.m.
That account seems to fit with other information gathered by the Jones family's attorney, Sam Adam Jr.
"The shell casings that were shot, many were found on the sidewalk area and near the street, which suggests to me that the gunfire came from a substantial distance away, that no police officers' life was in danger at the time," Adam said.
The father of 19-year-old Quintonio LeGrier summoned police when the n-i-u student threatened his dad with a baseball bat. The father asked downstairs neighbor Bettie Jones to open the door for police. But it's still unclear what police saw that led to the deadly gunfire.
"This is more than an accident," Adam said. "This is something that never should have happened."
Meanwhile, Jones' four daughters continue to try to come to grips with the loss of their mother, a 55-year-old who worked at a bakery, and as a crossing guard, and doted on her kids.
"My mom was brutally murdered in her own home just by opening her door and it's crazy because you only have one mom and you never get her back," said Latisha Jones.
"They took my mommy from me," said Latonya Jones. "She was everything. She meant the world to me. She would have broke her neck to make sure all her kids were happy."
The Jones family's legal team is still gathering information, and especially wants to see the IPRA report on the shooting, but fully expects to file a wrongful death lawsuit against police and the city.
Meantime, an attorney for 19-year-old Quintonio LeGrier tells CBS 2 he filed suit Monday in connection with LeGrier's death