A police surveillance agency on Thursday released a video of a Chicago police officer who shot and killed 13-year-old Adam Toledo last month. Mayor Lori Lightfoot called for calm as the city supported protests throughout the night.
The video shows an officer leaving his vehicle and chasing Toledo who was running down an alley. When the officer catches up with the teenager, he orders him to raise his hands and shout, “Drop it, drop it.” The officer fired a single shot at Toledo’s chest as the teenager raised his hands.
The teenager falls to the ground and the officer rushes to him for help and asks for backing. Police said a semi-automatic pistol was found a few meters away. Lightfoot said Thursday there is “no evidence” that the teenager shot the weapon before he was shot.
The incident on March 29 began around 2:30 a.m. when a police sound scanner picked up gunshots. Less than a minute later, police encountered Toledo and 21-year-old Ruben Roman, who was tackled and arrested by police.
A lawyer for the officer accused of shooting Toledo claims that Toledo was armed and that the officer ‘was dealing with a life-threatening and deadly violent situation’ and ‘left no other option’.
The lawyer representing the teenager’s family said Toledo was not holding the weapon when the officer opened fire. “The videos speak for themselves,” attorney Adeena Weiss Ortiz said Thursday. “Adam had no gun for the last second of his life.”
Shafkat Anowar / AP