WICKER PARK — Two area beat cops were honored by the City Council this week for their role in disarming an offender during a dramatic scuffle at a Wicker Park cell phone shop in October.
Shakespeare District Police officers Jessie A. Rosario, Jr., and David P. Uting were congratulated for "their professionalism, valor, and exceptional efforts on behalf on the citizenry of Chicago."
Dan Kero, 34, manager of eRepair Solutions at 1719 W. North Ave. said he was working behind the counter when Dion Rutledge, 25, came in requesting the phone to be unlocked.
"I was busy with other stuff and told him to come back in 45 minutes," Kero recalled.
Meanwhile, a teenager who'd had his iPhone stolen at gunpoint by Rutledge the night prior was using the "Where's My Phone?" app to trace his phone to the store and showed up to claim it.
The victim notified police detectives, who dispatched Uting and Rosario.
After Rutledge returned, Uting and Rosario entered the shop, where they approached him to conduct a pat down after the victim had identified him.
When Rutledge allegedly reached for his waistband and pulled out a Smith & Wesson 9 mm semiautomatic handgun, Kero witnessed Rosario instantly pushing Rutledge against the wall, which prompted Uting to use quick reflexes to grab and wrestle the handgun out of Rutledge's hand.
Complicating an already charged situation, Rutledge's girlfriend allegedly entered the store and jumped onto Uting's back, but the officer was able to maintain focus and disarm Rutledge.
"I was impressed, they didn't know the full situation or what they were walking into, only that there might have been a stolen phone. Who knows what [Rutledge] could have done," Kero said.
Kero, who said the incident was captured on the store's video camera, described the officers as "very professional" and said they "used correct tactics with approaching [Rutledge], understanding people's rights."
Rutledge, 25, of the 1100 block of North Harding Avenue, was charged with armed robbery, possession of a firearm by a felon, two counts of resisting a police officer and drug possession charges, according to police. His girlfriend was charged with resisting arrest.
Rosario and Uting have worked together as partners on the 'Third Watch' for more than 15 years, patrolling Bucktown-Wicker Park Beat 1433 from the hours of 4 p.m. to midnight.
The officers were given a certificate, a booklet that describes the incident in detail and is signed by Emanuel and City Clerk Susan Mendoza.
It wasn't their first time being called in front of the City Council.
In 2006, Rosario and Uting were honored with a resolution introduced by former First Ward Ald. Manny Flores for their role in evacuating a burning building on the 2500 block of North Moffat Street, just west of Western Avenue.
In that incident, the officers came to the aid of another officer who'd collapsed and had to be revived and carried down five flights of stairs.
Reached by phone, Uting — who said Ald. Joe Moreno (1st) had introduced the resolution after becoming aware of the incident after one of his staffers attended a CAPS meeting — said the best part of the experience was the new live streaming of council meetings, which enabled a teacher at his son's preschool to display the meeting through a digital smart board.
"My wife works near my son's school and they both got to watch it live, when I found that out, it made my day," Uting said.
Before the resolution was announced, the city council also memorialized a firefighter that passed away.
"The kids in the classroom got to see what these city councils think of police and firefighters. That's most important to me, that my son got to see something positive," Uting said.
