Lawsuit Blames Illinois State Police For Man's Death When Gun Discharged During Harvey Traffic Stop
HARVEY, Ill. (CBS) -- Illinois State Police face a new lawsuit over a traffic stop in Harvey that ended in a fatal shooting.
As CBS 2's Charlie De Mar reported, the troopers are accused in the lawsuit of failing to secure a gun from the car and using it to kill Darren Green Jr.
In the lawsuit, attorneys say the two unnamed Illinois State Police troopers had their hands on Green's gun - had the opportunity to secure it but instead used it against him.
This Oct. 7 traffic stop on Halsted Street near 147th Street in Harvey started with two ISP troopers pulling a woman over for not having her lights on.
"You think you forgot your lights, or what?" a trooper says to the woman in dashcam video.
"No, I thought they were on. They automatically cut on," the woman said.
As the 11-year veteran trooper walked back up to the car, he saw Green in the passenger seat and a gun.
"Don't move! Don't move! Don't move!" the trooper is heard saying.
What happens next inside appears on video. State police said there was a struggle over the gun, and Green began driving the car and crashing into a bus stop – after which point a shot went off and the bullet hitting Green in the head.
The father of two was killed. The woman and child in the back seat were uninjured.
A memorial with teddy bears and candles now sit at that same bus stop. But questions about that night and what happened inside that car still remain.
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In a new lawsuit, attorneys representing Green's estate said the troopers acted "without any legal justification."
They argue the dashcam video shows the trooper with Green's gun in hand - meaning Green was no longer armed.
But they allege that the gun was never secured, and that the trooper had the opportunity to walk the gun away from the conflict - but didn't.
Attorney Andre Grant said in a statement, "Troopers then shot unarmed Darren Green Jr. in the back of the head, killing him with the same weapon they recovered and failed to secure."
Neither of the troopers fired their service guns. The fatal shot came from Green's gun.
The Illinois State Police declined to comment any further on the case, citing respect and integrity of the investigation.
