Paul O'Neal Shooting: Chicago Sees Another Controversial Police Video

CHICAGO, IL — Police video released Friday morning by the city’s Independent Police Review Authority shows at least two officers shooting into the windshield and from behind a car driven by 18-year-old Paul O’Neal last week on the city’s Southeast Side.

Afterward, a few Chicago Police officers are seen on the video clips celebrating, slapping and shaking each other's hands. One suggests the body camera an officer is wearing should be turned off. The body cameras were added just this year amid criticism of police actions and a Justice Department investigation of the force.

The videos — none of which show O'Neal being shot — also show moments where the officers are anxious about what will happen next.

One officer is heard talking about how he will be on 30 days of desk duty. Police officers also can be heard asking each other whether O'Neal fired shots at police.

"They shot at us too, right?" one asks.

Says another: "I don't want anything to happen to that ----ing guy dude. The way ----'s going man, I'm going to be ----ing crucified man."

O’Neal died shortly after at an area hospital on Thursday, July 28. The three officers involved were stripped of their police powers days later. Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson acted swiftly to do so, saying he saw evidence department policy was violated when he viewed the videos last week.

O'Neal was a suspect in a motor vehicle theft out of west suburban Bolingbrook.

Nine videos from police dashboard and officer body cameras were released late Friday morning, another departure from past practice in Chicago. O'Neal's family, their attorney and several activists were invited to watch the videos before the Independent Police Review Authority released them to the public.

Michael Oppenheimer, the O’Neal family attorney, called the video “one of the most horrific things I have seen.” The family has already filed a lawsuit over the shooting.

“It looked like cold-blooded murder,” Oppenheimer said.

Dean Angelo Sr., president of the Fraternal Order of Police, the union that represents Chicago Police officers, issued a statement Friday:

While there are multiple aspects to consider pertaining to the released videos, it is important to be mindful of how rapidly this event unfolded. Due to the fact that this chaotic incident occurred in a matter of moments, each individual perspective needs to be taken into consideration.

It is the Lodge’s hope that the process of this investigation will be conducted in a manner that is guided by the utmost level of professionalism and expertise. Now more than ever, police-involved situations which result in a death need to be completed in a time frame necessary to ensure that a thorough and impartial examination is adhered to.

While this case remains fluid in nature, it is of critical importance to every Chicagoan to not rush to judgment and to allow the systems in place to play out.

One dashcam video released by the IPRA shows an officer firing at the stolen Jaguar as it headed toward the police officers in the 7400 block of South Merrill Avenue in the South Shore neighborhood. The shots continued as the vehicle pulled past at least two squad cars, sideswiping a police vehicle.

Viewer advisory: The videos include graphic language.

Another video shows an officer shooting at a closer range, again continuing after the vehicle sped past and then a foot chase that resulted in the apprehension of O’Neal in the backyard of a nearby residence.

None of the videos released Friday show shots being fired at O'Neal on foot.

A Chicago Police Department spokesman earlier this week told reporters that the body camera on the officer who shot O'Neal in the back while on foot pursuit did not record that moment.

Ja'Mal Green, a Black Lives Matter activist, spoke to reporters after he watched the video alongside O'Neal's family.

"At the end of the day, you do see the officers shooting into the vehicle," Green said. "But Paul O'Neal was not shot then. What you do see is ... (he was) running from the gunshots, they shot him and killed him.

"He was running away."

O’Neal was seen with blood coming from his back and face first on the ground in a backyard when one of the officers grabbed his head and yelled at him, calling him a "b---- ass mother------."

Police also handcuffed O'Neal as he was on the ground.

"We just watched the family watch the execution of their son," said Oppenheimer, the family attorney, after watching the videos.

Also on Patch

• Mother of Paul O'Neal 'Broke Down' While Watching Dash Cam Video
• Protesters Gather at Chicago Police HQ After Release of Paul O'Neal Shooting Videos

After the arrest, officers could be heard asking each other if any of them were shot. There have been no indications any weapon was found on O'Neal.

“My ----ing” arm hurts,” one of them said. It was one of at least a dozen times in the videos where an officer used the F-word.

Before the feed cuts out, one of the videos shows two officers high-fiving each other following the ordeal.

An officer is also seen pointing to a body camera and saying, "make sure this is off." Another complained he would be put on "goddamn desk duty" for 30 days.

IPRA Director Sharon Fairley, a former federal prosecutor, called the videos "shocking and disturbing." The IPRA investigates all police shootings. Fairley took over leadership of the IPRA in December 2015. At the same time, the Justice Department Civil Rights Division announced its probe of the department in the wake of the release of the Chicago Police shooting video showing the death of Laquan McDonald.

Fairley described the videos as having the "utmost public interest."

Johnson has vowed the full cooperation of the Chicago Police Department, applauding the IPRA for releasing the video.

"We will not wait to look for ways we can learn from this incident," he said.

CPD Dashboard and Body Camera Videos

Johnson released a statement Friday afternoon:

Also on Patch

• Family of Paul O'Neal Sues Chicago Police Officers
• Cops Stripped of Police Powers After Fatal Shooting