Man Fatally Shot By Police Not Taken To Hospital For 25 Minutes

WAUKEGAN, IL — Records show nearly 30 minutes passed between the time now-fired Waukegan police officer Dante Salinas jumped out of his squad car and started shooting and the point when an ambulance managed to get one of the two people he shot to the hospital.

Other officers feared the Waukegan couple might be armed after Salinas shot them shortly after midnight on Oct. 21 near the intersection of Helmholz and South Martin Luther King Jr. avenues, according to police and 911 call records released Thursday by the city of Waukegan in response to public records requests.

Tafara Williams, the 20-year-old driver, survived the shooting and was taken to Advocate Condell Medical Center within about 10 minutes of being shot, records show.

"Multiple officers arrived on scene and believed the occupants of the vehicle were armed with guns," an officer reported.

No guns were found.

Williams shouted that she was injured and could not feel her legs. She tried to get out of her gray Mitsubishi Galant but had trouble standing and fell back into the driver's seat of her car, according to police reports.

"It appeared that Tafara was losing strength. I observed Tafara's right arm in the vehicle while her left hand was on the ground, supporting her weight. It looked like Tafara was reaching for something in the vehicle with her right hand,” the officer continued. “Due to Officer Salinas calling out shots fired, I believed Tafara was going for a weapon."

Marcellis Stinette, 19, the passenger, was pronounced dead from multiple gunshot wounds shortly after arriving at the Vista East Hospital in Waukegan around 12:30 a.m. Oct. 21, according to Waukegan police and the Lake County coroner.

After the shooting, Williams continued in reverse, crashing into a building. Police waited to get a ballistic shield to approach the crashed car, according to police, eventually dragging dragging Williams away from the car to check for weapons. Officers found both passenger side doors would not open and reported Stinnette was breathing but unresponsive at the time.

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According to dispatch records, the shooting happened moments after midnight. Police set up behind a shield after about four minutes. After about six minutes, police requested a second ambulance.

Nearly 13 minutes after the shooting, dispatchers received a 911 call from the scene.

"What did y'all do to him," a female voice cries. "Where's the ambulance? There's somebody shot out here."

"OK we're right there," the dispatcher tells her. "They're coming."

"They're not f----- right there," the caller continues. "Not one f----- ambulance! He's on the f----- ground!"

About 14 minutes after the shooting, Williams was on her way to the hospital, records show. Another ambulance was dispatched to pick up Salinas, who was described as shaken, about 18 minutes after the shooting.

The ambulance that picked up Stinnette was reported to be on its way to Vista East about 28 minutes after the shooting. When it arrived around 12:30 a.m., the hospital's emergency room was briefly placed on lockdown, according to police reports.

Stinnette was pronounced dead about five minutes later, according to Lake County Coroner Howard Cooper, who has declined to say how many times Stinnette was shot, citing an ongoing investigation.

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The shooting followed an encounter with another officer that led to a brief chase and crash. After the car drove into a pole and shifted into reverse, Salinas opened fire. He said the car "almost tried to run me over."

Salinas did not turn on his body-worn camera after getting out of his car until after the shooting, so the shooting not captured on video. That was one of the reasons for his firing, according to his termination letter from Chief Wayne Walles.

"I have also learned that the passenger of that suspect car, was shot and killed by your actions. That passenger was not in control of the suspect car," Walles told Salinas, a five-year department veteran and Gurnee resident.

VIDEO: Dashboard, Bodycam Shows Arrest Of Marcellis Stinnette, Brief Chase

Salinas had previously been named in a federal civil rights lawsuit that alleged he pistol whipped a detainee in August, leading to fractured bones. He had also received a verbal reprimand less than three weeks earlier for insubordination after he had been away on leave for "some time."

The other officer, James Keating, remains employed by the city. Both Stinnette and Williams are Black. Salinas is Hispanic, and Keating is white.

Both Stinette's estate and Williams have filed federal civil lawsuits against the officers involved and the city of Waukegan. No charges have been filed in connection with the incident.

RELATED: Black Couple Shot: Lawsuits Filed, Officers Identified

However, in a sworn statement seeking a search warrant for the Mitsubishi following the shooting, a Waukegan police detective alleged there was evidence in the car that will provide evidence of aggravated assault and aggravated fleeing or attempting to elude a police officer.

The affidavit in support of the search warrant request also alleged that Stinnette had a non-extraditable arrest warrant connected to violating probation in Florida.

Before Williams drove away from the initial encounter outside her house, video from body-worn camera shows the officer announce that Stinnette was under arrest. Williams asked why.

"Because he got a warrant," the officer responded.