Chicago Cop Not Justified Shooting Teen; Mom Awarded $350K In Wrongful-Death Lawsuit

CHICAGO, IL — A jury ruled Tuesday that Chicago police officer was not justified fatally shooting a teenage boy in the back during a foot chase on the Fourth of July in 2013 and awarded the 17-year-old's mother $350,000 in civil damages in her wrongful-death lawsuit against the city, according to NBC 5 Chicago. Officer Robert Gonzalez is accused of shooting Christian Green as police pursued the teen, but the officer claims he only opened fire after the boy turned and pointed a gun at him.

The jury began deliberating the case Friday, April 16, after hearing closing arguments. The 10 jurors determined their verdict by Tuesday afternoon, accroding to reports. Lawyers for Green's mother, Patricia, had not ask for a specific dollar amount concerning damages, but they did ask the jury to consider the grief and pain the family still continues to suffer, as well as all the missed occasions loved ones will no longer be able to celebrate with Christian, such as birthdays, holidays and other events, the Chicago Tribune reported Friday after closing statements.

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During the trial, Gonzalez's claim that Christian pointed a weapon at him during the chase was supported by three other Chicago police officers, the Tribune reports. But the legal team for Patricia Green said that didn't make sense because the teen had tossed the handgun in trash can earlier when officers in unmarked squad cars chased him into a vacant lot, the report added.

Video from a nearby store security camera in the Washington Park neighborhood showed Green throwing away the gun as he ran, with the gun hitting the trash can rim and falling to the ground, the report stated. Green is then seen turning back, picking up the gun and then continuing to run, the report added. Gonzalez said Christian was about 25 feet away when the officer fired, and the gun was found around 75 feet away from the teen's body, according to the report.

Gonzalez fired 11 times, but only one shot hit Christian, the report stated. The fatal bullet hit the left side of the boy's back and ripped through his heart and lung before exiting his chest, according to the report. In September of 2014, the Independent Police Review Authority determined the shooting was justified.

The wrongful-death trial also had observers scrutinizing testimony from police Superintendent Eddie Johnson as it related to how the department handles certain situations. Johnson was called to testify in the case because he was the highest-ranking officer at the scene of Christian's shooting, the Chicago Sun-Times reports. When asked by the lawyer for Green's mother if it's acceptable to shoot suspects in the back, Johnson replied yes, the report added.

The ruling Tuesday comes on the heels of last week's $13.4 million jury award in a wrongful conviction case, in which a Chicago man accused police and prosecutors of forcing him to confess to a 1992 double murder. Deon Patrick, 45, served more than two decades in prison.

More via the Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Sun-Times

photo via Shutterstock

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