Alderman slams probe of shooting by detective

Alderman slams probe of shooting by detective
Angela Helton cries at a rally to protest a police shooting that killed her daughter, Rekia Boyd. WBEZ/Chip Mitchell
Alderman slams probe of shooting by detective
Angela Helton cries at a rally to protest a police shooting that killed her daughter, Rekia Boyd. WBEZ/Chip Mitchell

Alderman slams probe of shooting by detective

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A Chicago alderman says the city’s account of a fatal shooting by an off-duty police detective is “thin and weak” and says investigators aren’t doing a thorough job.

Alderman Michael Chandler (24th) says he has heard from North Lawndale residents who saw the shooting but have yet to be contacted by authorities. “A young person’s life [has been] taken away and there is not one person that has been out on these streets to canvass the area to talk to any of these witnesses.”

Chandler says the detective lives a few doors from South Albany Avenue and West 15th Place, where the shooting took place last Wednesday.

A police department statement says the detective was pulling out of an alley and saw people “causing a disturbance.” After rolling down his window to investigate, the detective saw a man point a gun at him, the statement says.

The detective opened fire and injured the man, Antonio Cross, 39, who says he did not have a weapon. A bullet also killed a woman, Rekia Boyd, 22.

About 200 anti-police brutality activists and neighborhood residents rallied Tuesday night at the shooting scene and marched to the police department’s Ogden District station.

Police spokespersons referred questions about the shooting to the city’s Independent Police Review Authority.

Carlos Weeden, IPRA’s deputy chief, said his agency’s investigation is ongoing. He declined to provide any other information.