Chicago police arrested and charged a person with attempted murder after they assert he shot at officers in an event that prompted looting downtown.
Latrell Allen, 20, of Englewood was charged with two felony counts of attempted murder within the degree and one felony count of unlawful use of a weapon, Chicago police said Monday. He was arrested Sunday afternoon after police say he fled and fired multiple rounds at officers who were responding to a call of an individual with a gun.
Officers returned fire and hit Allen, who was in stable condition, police said. He was taken to a hospital, and three officers also were taken to a hospital for observation, police said.
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| Chicago man charged with attempted murder in shooting that police say sparked looting |
Activists with Black Lives Matter Chicago cast doubt on the police narrative of the incident during a statement Monday, saying Allen "ran away, rightfully fearing for his safety during this dangerous interaction with racist armed police."
Chicago police "claims the victim shot first which they found a gun on the scene. These details are uncorroborated, partially because CPD also claims there's no body camera footage available for this interaction," the group said. "This may be a clear violation of state law and CPD policy and another example of police showing a scarcity of transparency."
After the shooting, a crowd gathered within the side neighborhood and faced off with police after someone reportedly told folks that police had shot and wounded a toddler , said David Brown, Chicago local department superintendent, at a press conference Monday. That crowd eventually dispersed.
"Tempers flared, fueled by misinformation because the afternoon became evening," Brown said.
Later that night, hundreds smashed windows, stole from stores and clashed with police in Chicago’s Magnificent Mile shopping district and other parts of the city’s downtown. About 100 people were arrested and 13 officers were injured, police said.
About 400 officers were sent to the downtown area after seeing posts on social media that Brown said were prompted by the shooting and encouraged a "caravan" of cars to interact in looting.
At least one watchman and a civilian were hospitalized in critical condition after being shot, Brown said.
Chicago raised a number of its bridges and restricted access to parts of the city's downtown Monday night. About 200 protesters gathered Monday evening outside a police headquarters and continued to boost questions on why the officers had not been wearing body cameras. One sign at the protest read, "Our futures are looted from us ... loot back."
The downtown area reopened Tuesday morning. Another protest condemning the police shooting of Allen was planned at a police station for Tuesday evening.
News Source:USA Today button
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