(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — A man seen on video being arrested by Chicago Police Officers on the Near North Side earlier this week – one holding a gun to the man’s head – has filed a lawsuit alleging illegal and excessive use of force.
The cell phone video of the arrest of 32-year-old Lorenzo Williams is short.
One minute. And, according to the Police Superintendent, it doesn’t tell the whole story.
In the video, officers have Williams on the sidewalk. One hits him in the head with what appears to be a police radio. He then tells Williams he’s going to shoot him and points a gun at his head.
"What I can tell you right now is that it ended in an arrest, gun recovery at the time. But what I will tell you is that the Chicago Police Department and myself, we take these things seriously. There's an internal investigation that has been launched," Supt. Larry Snelling said.
The police report says officers saw that Williams had a gun in his front waistband. It says he tried to run and was taken down. Additionally, he tried to grab the gun while struggling with the officers.
He was charged with four felonies: unlawful use of a weapon by a felon, two counts of resisting or obstructing a police officer, and one count of aggravated assault of a police officer.
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