'Feelings Of Fear, Pain And Anger': Lightfoot On The Backdrop Of Minnesota Police Shootings With CPD Shooting, Killing Of 13-Year Old
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said the soon-to-be-released video of the police shooting of the 13-year-old Adam Toledo by a CPD officer is coming at a time when law enforcement is being scrutinized for the shooting deaths of unarmed Black men.
Toledo, a teen from Little Village, was shot and killed by a CPD officer. COPA is investigating the incident. The video is set to be released on Thursday at 2:30 p.m.
"Right now, residents all over the country are reckoning with the ongoing Derek Chauvin trial, and death of 20-year-old Daunte Wright in Minnesota this past Sunday. Also,at the hands of police," Lightfoot said. "All of which have only heightened feelings of fear, pain and anger and come as a blow that threatens to slow our progress in our mission to create an environment where all residents feel safe and protected and the communities that they call home."
Lightfoot vowed to keep working with communities of color and work to rebuild trust between those communities and police.
"We cannot rest, and I will not rest until all of our communities feel and experience real safety and protection," Lightfoot said.
The mayor said according to the bodycam video she saw, she didn't see Toledo shoot at police.
"I I don't want to get into the real substance of this because the independent investigation is going on, but I've seen no evidence whatsoever that Adam Toledo shot at the police," said Lightfoot of the bodycam video.
"A little over two weeks ago a tragedy occurred that left a child dead, a mother in mourning, and a family in crisis,Lightfoot said. "In the early morning hours of Monday March 29 Little Village in Chicago police officer shot and killed a 13 year old boy that we now know was Adam Toledo."
She added "I urge everyone reserve judgment until the civilian office of police accountability (COPA) has done its work. And I'm urging COPA, to do that work. Early transparently and with all deliberate speed."
The mayor said the city has been working on preparations for possible protests in the Derek Chauvin trial.
"We have been preparing for the Chauvin trial for months now. And as part of those preparations, we have been in regular contact with businesses all across the city, not just in the downtown area, but also in the neighborhoods and of course, there are a number of businesses in Little Village as well," Lightfoot said.
Derek Chauvin is on trial for the 2020 murder of George Floyd, where he had his knee on Floyd's neck despite pleas from Floyd to let him breathe. Video of the incident circulated around the world and sparked nationwide protests, including in Chicago, in the days that followed.
Earlier this week, a police officer in Brooklyn Center, Minnesota was charged with second degree manslaughter in the shooting death of 20-year-old Daunte Wright. Officer Kim Potter, a 26-year veteran, was arrested, then released from jail a few hours later after posting $100,000 bond.
Potter, 48, resigned from the Minneapolis suburb's police department Tuesday along with the city's police chief.
Police stopped Wright for having expired tags on Sunday and found that he had an outstanding warrant. As police tried to cuff him, Wright jumped into his car. The former police chief said Potter thought she grabbed her Taser, but instead pulled her pistol, then fired the fatal shot.
