Woman Killed By Morris Cop In Parking Lot: Wrongful Death Federal Lawsuit Falls Apart

MORRIS, IL — The city of Morris and Morris Police Officers Nick Pampinella and Casie Price have obtained a major legal victory in connection with the September 29, 2023, deadly parking lot shooting of Alivia Schwab.

According to federal court filings, U.S. District Judge Charles Kocoras issued a 15-page ruling in the federal lawsuit filed by Alivia Schwab's son, Nicholas. The lawyers for the city of Morris and its police officers filed a summary judgment and the judge agreed with their arguments and determined Schwab's federal lawsuit should not go forward, Joliet Patch has learned.

"Morris Police Officers Pampinella and Price responded to a call regarding a suicidal woman armed with a knife on September 29, 2023," Judge Kocoras summary judgment ruling explained. "Body camera footage, which is undisputed, shows that Schwab emerged from her apartment holding an 8-inch chef’s knife and a cell phone.

"Over the following 18 seconds, the officers commanded Schwab to drop the knife at least five times and to stop advancing at least seven times. Pampinella backed up approximately 38 feet as Schwab continued to advance approximately 64 feet. When Pampinella called for Price to deploy her taser, Schwab briefly glanced at Price, then turned back toward Pampinella and began running at him. When Schwab closed to approximately 13 feet— a distance she could cover in under 2 seconds—Pampinella fired, fatally striking Schwab."

In rendering his decision, Judge Kocoras pointed out, "Based on binding Seventh Circuit precedent establishing that deadly force is objectively reasonable when a person advances on an officer with a deadly weapon and ignores repeated commands to stop, the officers’ actions do not rise to the level of a Fourth Amendment violation."

Events Leading Up To Alivia Schwab's Death

Judge Kocoras explained that prior to her death at 40 years old, Alivia Schwab spent nearly seven years in mental health institutions before moving into her Morris apartment at 1863 Ann Lane, eight days beforehand.

On the morning of Sept. 29, 2023, Schwab spoke with her ex-husband, Brad, who was described as a trigger for her mental health issues, the judge pointed out.

She then called the head of Bourbonnais Terrace, the mental health facility from which she had been discharged, and asked to return. A crisis counselor was directed to call Schwab.

"During that call, Schwab stated she was going to hurt herself. A co-worker called 911 while the counselor remained on the line with Schwab," the judge relayed. "Shortly before 11 a.m., Officers Pampinella and Price responded to Schwab’s apartment complex for a 'code 7 attempt,' meaning a suicide call. The dispatcher informed the officers that the subject had a knife in hand, was 'cutting herself currently,' and was 'on the phone with her crisis (counselor).'"

The judge noted that the responding Morris police officers had an initial goal of talking her down to ensure the scene was safe for the ambulance to arrive.

"Neither officer had previously encountered Schwab. They arrived almost simultaneously and parked down the street. As they approached Schwab’s unit on foot, they observed her standing in her doorway holding a cell phone in one hand and an 8-inch chef’s knife in the other," Judge Kocoras' decision outlined. "Pampinella drew his firearm and said, 'Miss, Miss, drop the knife.' Schwab began silently walking toward Pampinella, who repeated his command in a louder voice and began backing up.

"Over the next 18 seconds, the officers commanded Schwab to drop the knife five times and to stop coming toward them seven times. Schwab never responded verbally or complied with any command. She held the knife between shoulder and chest height, tip down, arm partially bent, and continued advancing. Pampinella backed up approximately 38 feet as Schwab advanced approximately 64 feet."

Leading up to the deadly police shooting, Pampinella yelled to fellow officer Price to "tase her," the judge outlined. At that point, Schwab glanced at Officer Price, who was drawing her taser, then turned back toward Pampinella and began running directly at him.

"She was moving approximately twice as fast as Pampinella could backpedal," Judge Kocoras ruled. "When Schwab closed to approximately 13 feet—a distance she could cover in under two seconds—Pampinella fired four shots, fatally striking Schwab."

After reviewing the evidence, the U.S. District Court judge in Chicago felt convinced the Schwab family's lawsuit was weak.

"The facts here are materially indistinguishable—indeed, if anything, the circumstances in this case present a stronger case for the officers," Judge Kocoras wrote. "The undisputed body camera footage shows that Schwab advanced toward Pampinella holding an eight-inch knife, ignored at least 10 commands to either drop the knife or stop advancing, and then began running at Pampinella when she was approximately 13 feet away ... this case has body camera footage that establishes the critical events beyond dispute."

The federal judge also took issue with the plaintiff's argument that "Schwab never pointed the knife at the officers and held it pointed downward throughout the encounter. This is a distinction without legal significance ... A knife with the tip down, held at or above waist height in front of the body—as the video shows Schwab held it—can maim or kill regardless of the blade’s orientation. The Court declines to adopt a rule that would require officers, in the seconds before a potential attack, to parse the geometric angle of a knife before defending themselves," Judge Kocoras found.

On page 15 of his decision, he wrote, "For the foregoing reasons, the Court grants Defendants’ Motion for Summary Judgment as to Plaintiff’s Section 1983, Monell, and ADA claims and declines to exercise supplemental jurisdiction over Plaintiff’s remaining state law claims. Judgment is entered in favor of Defendants on Counts I, IV and V of Plaintiff’s First Amended Complaint. Civil case terminated."

Not ready to give up, the Chicago lawyer representing Schwab's family has filed an appeal to the U.S. 7th Circuit Court of Appeals in hopes of getting their civil rights and excessive force lawsuit against Morris revived in the federal court system.

Morris and its two police officers were defended by attorneys Michael Bersani and David Mathues of Itasca's Hervas, Condon & Bersani, the same law firm that represents the city of Joliet in its federal litigation.

Jeffrey J. Neslund of the Law Offices of Jeffrey J. Neslund was the lawyer for the Schwab family.