BRONZEVILLE — The police officer who shot unarmed 18-year-old Paul O'Neal in the back, killing him in South Shore on Thursday night, had been equipped with a bodycam, but Chicago Police Department officials said Monday that it did not record the shooting.
Police Department spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said bodycams had been issued to the district within 10 days of the shooting, but the officer's bodycam "didn't capture [the] fatal encounter."
Mia Sissac, spokeswoman for the Independent Police Review Authority, said the oversight agency was investigating but she could not comment on details.
Other dashcam and bodycam video exist, and was expected to be released by IPRA within 60 days, in keeping with its policy adopted earlier this year.
In the meantime, Chicago Police Supt. Eddie Johnson has moved to relieve three unnamed officers of their police duties for violating department policy. That includes the officer who shot and killed O'Neal and two others who opened fire.
According to police reports, O'Neal and a teen — ultimately arrested, but not identified — were spotted about 7:30 p.m. Thursday in South Shore in a Jaguar that had been reported stolen in suburban Bolingbrook.
Officers attempted to stop the car near 74th Street and Merrill Avenue, but it sideswiped a squad car and another car. Officers opened fire. O'Neal died after being shot in the back.
Activist Lamon Reccord said he was a friend of O'Neal in a Facebook post stating: "He should've been detained/arrested, not experiencing death!" He also tweeted: "I miss my brother but the police took him."
Also on Monday, activist William Calloway, who played a role in the release of the Laquan McDonald video, called for the Independent Police Review Authority to release all video of the incident before the established 60-day period.
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