CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Chicago's Civilian Office of Police Accountability announced plans to release videos of the fatal police shooting of 13-year-old Adam Toledo on Thursday.
COPA made the announcement Wednesday, a day after the 13-year-old boy’s family viewed the material.
The videos come from body cameras worn by police when an officer fatally shot Adam in the early morning hours of March 29 in Little Village. COPA said it will also release third-party video, transmission from the city’s Office of Emergency Communications, ShotSpotter recordings, case incident information and tactical response, and arrest reports. They also said the Toledo family had been notified of the decision.
“COPA has remained sensitive to the family’s grief and is carrying out this release in accordance with the city’s video release policy,” COPA said in a statement. “COPA’s core values of integrity and transparency are essential to building public trust, particularly in incidents related to an officer-involved shooting, and we are unwavering in our commitment to uphold these values.”
On Wednesday, Mayor Lori Lightfoot said she had viewed what she believed was all the footage, including police body camera videos, of the fatal police shooting of Adam, but declined to comment on the videos or describe them. She said she doesn’t want to get in the way of ongoing investigations.
"First and foremost we have a family that is still incredibly in the frozen grief. A mom and father who have lost their son, siblings that have lost their brother, grandparents...
"We are going to work with the family to move this process along, but I think we have to be respectful of them and move at their speed," she said. “I’m not going to offer up my own thoughts about it.”
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Family members of 13-year-old Adam Toledo and their lawyer were shown police body cam video and other materials Tuesday at the office of the Civilian Office of Police Accountability.
“The experience was extremely difficult and heartbreaking for everyone present and especially for Adam’s family,” attorneys representing the Toledo family said in a statement Tuesday.
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Prosecutors said it was 21-year-old Ruben Roman who fired gunshots that brought officers to the area near 24th and Sawyer early on the morning of March 29. But prosecutors said when officers arrived, it was 13-year-old Adam who was holding the gun when the teen was shot and killed after refusing to drop it.
Roman has been charged with several felonies, including child endangerment, aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, and reckless discharge of a firearm for his actions that, prosecutors said, led to Toledo’s death.
“If [Roman] does not bring [Adam] with him at 2:30 in the morning, if he doesn’t bring his gun with him while on gun offender probation, if he doesn’t shoot that gun seven or eight times on a city street with [Adam] standing right next to him...and then fleeing with that gun, none of this would have happened,” Assistant State’s Attorney James Murphy said Saturday at a bail hearing for 21-year-old Ruben Roman.
According to the Sun-Times, prosecutors said nearby surveillance video captured Roman firing shots early on the morning of March 29 while Adam stood next to him at 24th Street and Sawyer Avenue.
Murphy said after firing the shots, Roman ran north with Adam on Sawyer and ducked into an alley near 23rd Street, where officers spotted them about a minute later.
According to Murphy, an officer took down Roman and a pair of gloves were knocked loose that were later found to have gunshot residue on them.
Another officer chased Adam, who eventually stopped in the alley, Murphy said, citing the officer’s body cam footage. The officer repeatedly told Adam to “drop it,” Murphy said.
When Adam, who allegedly had Roman's gun in his right hand, turned toward the officer, the officer shot him in the chest. Murphy said body cam footage showed the officer called to an ambulance and performed chest compressions, but Adam was pronounced dead at the scene shortly after.
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The Toledo family through its lawyer thanked COPA and the city late Tuesday for the opportunity to review the video before it is made public. On Wednesday they issued a second statement through the attorney asking for calm.
“We appreciate the community support and are grateful that events so far have remained peaceful,” the statement read. “We have heard reports in the media that more protests are planned today, and while we have no direct knowledge of such events, we pray that for the sake of our city, people remain peaceful to honor Adam’s memory and work constructively to promote reform.”
The officer who shot Adam has been placed on administrative duties for 30 days. COPA is still investigating the incident.
Mayor Lightfoot has asked that the Chicago Police Department reform its foot chase policy.
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