- Officer Robert Rialmo fatally shot Quintonio LeGrier, 19, and Bettie Jones, 55
- Rialmo said he fired when LeGrier swung a bat on the day after Christmas 2015
- Chicago Civilian Office of Police Accountability ruled shooting was unjustified
- Evidence suggested he did not swing the bat and was further away than claimed
A Chicago police disciplinary body has ruled an officer’s fatal shooting of a 19-year-old carrying a baseball bat and a bystander the day after Christmas in 2015 was unjustified.
Officer Robert Rialmo said he fired when Quintonio LeGrier swung an aluminium bat at him from a few feet away as he responded to a domestic disturbance.
Rialmo also accidentally killed neighbor Bettie Jones, 55, who was standing behind LeGrier.
The Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA) ruling on December 22 concluded LeGrier did not swing a bat at Rialmo.
The evidence also suggested that he was further away than claimed when he fired, according to an open records request by the Chicago Tribune.
Quintonio LeGrier, 19, (left) and Bettie Jones, 55, (right) were fatally shot by officer Robert Rialmo the day after Christmas in 2015. Rialmo said he shot at LeGrier when he swung a bat at him but the Civilian Office of Police Accountability found that he didn’t and that Rialmo was further away than he claimed
Superintendent Eddie Johnson has three months to decide what punishment he will seek for the officer. Typically COPA suggests firing officers in these cases.
The officer’s attorney, Joel Brodsky, calls the finding ‘a political decision’ and not one based on evidence.
COPA found that a ‘reasonable officer’ would not have felt in danger as LeGrier was inside the building at the time whereas Rialmo was outside beyond the front porch.
LeGrier’s case drew national attention two years ago.
LeGrier’s mother, Janet Cooksey, is comforted at a vigil the day after her son was killed