CPD Officer's Son Tragically Gunned Down in Case of Mistaken Identify: Reports

CHICAGO, IL -- A Chicago police officer’s son was fatally shot in what it is believed to be a case of mistaken identity. Arshell "Trey" Dennis III, 19, had spent the past several days visiting family before heading back to college, when he was gunned down in Chicago’s South Side Wrightwood neighborhood.

Dennis had come home to surprise his sick mother for her birthday. Neighbors told police that a gunman walked up to Dennis and started shooting outside a home near 82nd Street and Sacramento Avenue on Saturday, ABC 7 Chicago reported.

The young man, who was due to head back to St. John University in New York on Sunday, is the son of long-time veteran CPD officer Arshell "Chico" Dennis. ABC 7 Chicago said the elder Dennis is a close, personal friend of CPD Superintendent Eddie Johnson.

Dennis was taken to Little Company of Mary Hospital in Evergreen Park where he was pronounced dead from a gunshot wound to the chest.

Another local friend who was standing near Dennis was also wounded in the shooting. The 20-year-old friend was shot in the arm and side. He was transported in serious condition to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn. Dennis’s death is being investigated as a case of mistaken identity, according to the Chicago Tribune.

Johnson issued a statement to news media stating changes are needed in how repeat gun offenders are dealt with in the criminal justice system.

"Officer Dennis dedicated his life to make this city safer, and his son Arshell was a good kid, making his parents proud and studying for a promising future as a journalist. As always, the men and women of the CPD will stop at nothing to find who was responsible and bring a sense of closure and justice to Officer Dennis and all families affected by violence.”

Police do not believe that the 19-year-old, known as “Trey,” had any gang ties, based on his family the neighborhood where he lived.

"He was a beautiful young man, full of laughs and always teasing us," his grandfather, also named Arshell Dennis, told the Chicago Tribune. "It's a deep loss, and it hurts. I wish this senseless killing would stop."
The Dennis family also issued a statement, stating they were going to take him to airport on Sunday afternoon, where Trey was scheduled to start his junior year.

“Now because of this senseless violence, we will be grieving and planning his funeral. Trey was smart, funny and the light of our lives.”

Photo: Arshell "Trey" Dennis III, 19