A prosecutor who implied in court that 13-year-old Adam Toledo was holding a gun the moment he was fatally shot by a Chicago police officer was placed on leave a day after a video showing the boy’s hands were empty, made public.
“In court, a lawyer in our office last week did not fully present the facts regarding the death of a 13-year-old boy,” said Sarah Sinovic, a spokeswoman for the Atty of Cook County. Kim Foxx, said in a statement. “We have placed the individual on leave and are conducting an internal investigation into the matter.”
During an April 10 bond trial for 21-year-old Ruben Roman, who was with Adam when he was shot on March 29, Assistant State’s Atty. James Murphy apparently suggested that the boy was still holding the gun when Officer Eric Stillman pulled the trigger.
‘The officer tells [Adam] to drop it as [Adam] turn to the officer. [Adam] has a gun in his right hand, ‘Murphy told the Chicago Sun-Times. ‘Officer fires one shot [Adam], hit him in the chest. The gun that [Adam] held against the fence a few feet away. ‘
But Murphy did not explain what the video and screenshots revealed Thursday: that Adam did not lift anything in his hands when he was shot and that he dropped or threw the weapon away, less than a second before the officer fired the trigger. pulled. Police found a gun next to a fence after the shooting.
According to the Chicago Tribune, Foxx emailed staff members that the language in the pro Murphy read in court is not a complete account of all the evidence given to our office. ‘
But on Friday, Sinovic suggested that Murphy may not have had access to all of the video when he made the comments, telling the Sun-Times: “It is still being investigated what videos were available. [Murphy]. We are still trying to find out what he had access to when he made the statements in court. ”
Sinovic said in an email on Saturday that the office did not want to comment on the question of who else in the office saw the video footage before the April 10 hearing, nor would he respond to any other questions.
Images of the boy raising his empty hands when he was shot sparked outrage in the Little Village area where he lived and died, and beyond.
Roman was arrested at the scene on suspicion of resisting or obstructing a peace officer – an offense – but he was later charged with child molestation, unlawful use of a weapon and reckless dismissal of a firearm after investigators determined he had the gun several times before police arrived.
He remains in custody at Cook County Jail after a judge ordered him to hold a $ 150,000 bond.