A shooting by a Chicago police officer is under investigation by federal authorities, and a retired judge recently released dash-cam video of the white officer firing on a car occupied by black teenagers, according to ABC 7.
Court documents identify one of the officers involved as Marco Proano, who has been on desk duty since the incident on Dec. 22, 2013, the report says. He is accused of approaching the vehicle with his gun drawn and firing into the car filled with six juveniles, one of whom is seen jumping out and running away from what turned out to be a stolen vehicle, the news outlet reports. It had been stopped for speeding.
But a lawsuit filed months later alleged that Proano fired “more than a dozen rounds into the vehicle filled with minors without provocation, cause or justification,” the report says.
ABC 7 says that two of the teenagers were wounded—one in the shoulder, the other in his hip and heel. The original police account was that one of the teens was attempting to exit the car, and that figuring that the juvenile was in danger, Proano fired to stop the car, the news report says.
A pellet gun was found in the car, but attorneys for the teens say it was never pointed at police. The city, as is customary in lawsuits, sought an order keeping the dash-cam video under seal, and the order was granted, the report says.
But retired Juvenile Court Judge Andrew Berman, who heard the criminal case, saw the video, made a copy and provided it to the Chicago Reporter. Berman said Friday afternoon, “I had never seen anything so shocking in my career. It was outrageous. A reckless disregard for human life, and the larger community has a right to know,” the report says.
Watch the video here:
Read more at ABC 7.
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