Body camera video shows fatal police shooting of Isaac Goodlow III
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Carol Stream police on Friday released body camera video of the police shooting that killed 30-year-old Isaac Goodlow in his apartment last month.
Police shot Goodlow in his bedroom on Feb. 3 at the Villagebrook Apartments at 260 E. St. Charles Rd., after responding to a reported domestic violence incident.
Carol Stream police released body camera footage from all six officers who entered the one-bedroom unit after speaking to an alleged domestic violence victim who said she was injured in a physical altercation with Goodlow.
Police said two officers fired their weapons, and one officer deployed a Taser. A total of two shots were fired, and Goodlow was shot once in the chest.
The view from the first officer who entered Goodlow's bedroom is limited because his ballistic shield is blocking his body camera. Still, two gunshots can be heard immediately after the officers entered Goodlow's bedroom. Someone is heard yelling "stop, stop" after the gunfire. The sound of a Taser can be heard after the gunshots. After the gunshots, officers can be seen handcuffing Goodlow.
Goodlow later died at a nearby hospital.
After the shooting, several officers – including the one who shot Goodlow – appeared to be distressed.
Attorneys for Goodlow's family said the videos showed the shooting was not justified.
"The six unidentified Carol Stream police officers took a military-style approach, armed with the ballistic shield and guns drawn, broke into Isaac's bedroom and immediately shot and killed him. If shot at close-range and tasing was not enough, the officers handcuffed Isaac without first attempting to provide life-saving measures. Isaac bled out and ultimately died. This is yet another unjustifiable and unconscionable tragedy in America," attorneys Andrew Stroth and Steven Hart said in a statement.
Carol Stream police have not said what prompted officers to shoot Goodlow, but his family has claimed police told them he threw something at officers.
At no point before the shooting are officers heard telling Goodlow to drop a weapon or to get on the ground.
Goodlow's family protests
Earlier this week, Goodlow's family filed a federal wrongful death lawsuit against the department.
The lawsuit claims that officers were aware Goodlow's girlfriend was not in his apartment at the time they arrived in response to a domestic dispute and that police were at the building for more than 50 minutes without contacting Goodlow before raiding his apartment without justification.
Goodlow's family has said he was sleeping in his bed when police shot him. His family watched a redacted version of body camera video of the shooting earlier this month.
The lawsuit also claims Goodlow was unarmed when he "was shot dead in cold blood … while he lay sleeping inside the sanctity of his own bedroom."
On Friday night, Goodlow's family blocked traffic at a busy Carol Stream intersection in protest, holding signs and chanting, "Justice for Isaac Goodlow!"
Police ordered them to disperse, and warned them that they would be arrested if they did not.
"We want the truth," said Dajanae Barnes, Goodlow's niece. "We want everybody to see what happened to Isaac Goodlow."
CBS 2 spoke Friday to Goodlow's mother, Bonnie Pigram; sister, Kennetha Barnes; and brother, Michael Pigram, spoke to CBS 2 Friday after watching the video of his death on repeat. They said part of the body cam video was not released to the public.
"We're just as confused. The only thing we have seen that the public has not seen is the clear video. We've seen clear video of my brother sleeping in his bed, and they kick in his door, shooting him," Michael Pigram said at the protest Friday night.
"The video that was shown to the public today was heavily edited," said Goodlow's cousin, Genia Reynolds. "That is not the video that we were shown."
"They're not showing that he was laying in the bed when they shot him," said Bonnie Pigrim. "They're not showing no part of when they Tased him and did anything to him."
The family involved in the protest in Carol Stream Friday night dispersed, and no citations or arrests were made.
Carol Stream police said they released the video on Friday "as part of our commitment to transparency and our intention to give the public a fuller understanding of the events that unfolded that morning."
"The Carol Stream Police Department is devoted to respecting human life and will continue to listen to the concerns of our community during this trying time. As the family and loved ones of Mr. Goodlow navigate the tremendous grief that comes from the loss of a loved one, we offer them our most sincere condolences on their loss."
Carol Stream police also released a recorded statement, but did not allow reporters any opportunity to ask questions.
In that statement, Carol Stream police Chief Donald Cummings says after two shots were fired and a Taser was deployed, "Officers called for paramedics within 12 seconds from the time the first firearm was discharged."
Cummings made no mention in the recorded statement of the fact that Goodlow was handcuffed after suffering the gunshot wound.
A use-of-force expert has reservations about the shooting
Retired LAPD Sgt. and use of force expert Cheryl Dorsey reviewed the body camera footage for the CBS2 Investigators.
"I'm a little troubled by the fact that there wasn't much communication between the officers, and an attempt to talk down this suspect," Dorsey said. "They had a possibility to cover and conceal before they actually entered that room."
Dorsey said the act of sometimes handcuffing a suspect after shooting them is part of police training.
"The optics of someone who's just been shot being placed in handcuffs is always problematic in the community, but that's how officers are taught and trained. That's how I was trained on the Los Angeles Police Department," Dorsey said. "Sometimes, just because a person has been shot doesn't mean that they're necessarily incapacitated.
Still, Dorsey said she had a lot of questions.
"Did the officers have a plan?" she said. "Did they talk tactically about what they were going to do once they went inside?"
Dorsey said she is concerned that there did not appear to be an effort to deescalate from a position of safety — perhaps outside the bedroom door before barging in.
"Based on my questions, I would say that it wasn't justified – because I have so many questions, and I don't know what those answers would be," Dorsey said.
Police have never said if Goodlow was armed, or what prompted officers to shoot Goodlow. CBS 2 asked again on Friday, but there had been no response as of late in the afternoon.
Goodlow's family, again, has claimed police told them he threw something at officers before he was shot. If that is true, it was not visible on the body camera video that was provided.
The incident remains under investigation by the Public Integrity Team of the Metropolitan Emergency Response Investigations Taskforce. Once that investigation is complete, it will be reviewed by the DuPage County State's Attorney's office to determine whether any criminal charges should be filed.
