CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot is calling for peace as video of the March 31st police shooting death of Anthony Alvarez in Portage Park is released.
As happened in the recent fatal police shooting of 13-year-old Adam Toledo in Little Village, Mayor Lightfoot released a joint statement with the lawyers of the family of 22-year-old Anthony Alvarez.
They acknowledged the emotional impact of the video, and asked people to express themselves peacefully.
“Both parties are acutely aware of the range of emotions that will accompany the release of these materials, and we collectively issue this statement and ask that those who wish to express themselves do so peacefully and with respect for our communities and the residents of Chicago,” the statement read.
Alvarez’s family and its lawyers “believe that the release of these videos will be the beginning of a long process of healing for the family, and for all those who knew and loved Anthony.”
In Bronzeville, the Mayor refused to express an opinion on the case, which is under two investigations, but then, she paused and pointedly addressed the general circumstances.
"We can't live in a world where a minor traffic offense results in someone being shot and killed. That's not acceptable to me, and it shouldn't be acceptable to anyone," Lightfoot said.
Lightfoot also acknowledged the shooting involved a foot chase and said she hopes a rewrite on police policies of such chases will be ready for public comment sometime next month.
Alvarez’s family viewed footage Tuesday showing a Chicago police officer fatally shoot the 22-year old, according to Civilian Office of Police Accountability spokesman Ephraim Eaddy. The family said the video would be made public Wednesday, but COPA has not confirmed.
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Alvarez was shot and killed by an officer early on March 31 after a foot chase in the 5200 block of West Eddy Street. Alvarez allegedly pulled out a gun “which led to a confrontation with police,” and an officer shot him, police have said.
Alvarez was later pronounced dead at Illinois Masonic Medical Center. An autopsy found he died of multiple gunshot wounds, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office.
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Police have not said what sparked the initial foot chase. After the shooting, CPD spokesman Tom Ahern shared a photo of the gun allegedly recovered from Alvarez.
The shooting came about two days after an officer shot and killed 13-year-old Adam Toledo on March 29 in Little Village. Toledo’s killing also happened during a foot chase, prompting Mayor Lightfoot to direct the Police Department draft a new foot pursuit policy.
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(WBBM Newsradio and the Sun-Times Media Wire contributed to this copy.)