Body Camera Footage Shows Barber Shot By Chicago Police

CHICAGO, IL — Chicago police have released body camera footage of the police-involved shooting that claimed the life of 37-year-old barber Harith Augustus Saturday night in the South Shore neighborhood. Video shows three officers, two men and one woman, on foot patrol on 71st Street near Jeffrey Avenue confront Augustus on the sidewalk around 5:30 p.m. before a confrontation ensues and Augustus is shot while attempting to flee in the street.

Police described the incident caught on video as an "aggravated assault to a police officer." The three officers surround Augustus, who spins away from them and appears to reach for one of two guns he had on him while attempting to flee the police on foot heading eastbound on 71st.

Augustus was shot in the moments after he reaches for the gun. The shooter was one of the male officers, according to police. The consensus among witnesses on the night of the shooting was that the shooter was the female officer who was involved.

Police included a still frame in the video release that clearly shows Augustus, who neighborhood residents have identified as a barber that goes by the nickname "Snoop," in possession of two holstered weapons.

"From the police perspective, these things happen in a split second and officers make these decisions quickly," Chicago Police Department Superintendent Eddie Johnson said during a Sunday afternoon news conference on the incident that sparked multiple clashes between police officers and demonstrators in the South Shore neighborhood Saturday night.

"Our officers don't have the luxury of looking at the video like we do now," Johnson said, noting that the investigation was immediately turned over to the Civilian Office of Police Accountability once the officer fired the weapon.

But he said top officials in the police department felt "an obligation to the community, the city and our police officers" to release the video footage quickly based on the chaos that erupted in the neighborhood Saturday night as a result of the police-involved shooting.

Protests at the corner of 71st and Chappel Avenue included several water bottles, rocks and urine having been thrown at a line of police officers. Chants of "Murders," "(Expletive 12)" and other anti-police phrases and insults were common, as was protesters jumping on top of a police squad car that was parked at the scene.

Several police officers suffered minor injuries as a result of the bottles and rocks that were thrown, according to police.

At one point, police officers with night sticks charged at the group gathered in the parking lot. A police spokesman said four demonstrators were arrested. Others ran from the scene as a heated exchange continued in the Jeffrey Plaza parking lot.

RELATED: Chaos Erupts In South Shore After Barber Shot And Killed By Police

"We can't have another night like that," Johnson said.

The superintendent said a recent string of crime in the neighborhood led to a request that police put foot patrols in the area "to decrease violence." The officers involved in the questioning and shooting of Augustus were all on foot patrol at the time.

Watch the video of the shooting below. Please be advised it contains footage that some may find disturbing.

Photo via YouTube screenshot