Chicago PD Moves To Fire Officer Who Shot Teen, Grandma In 2015

CHICAGO — The Chicago Police Department are seeking to fire Ofc. Robert Rialmo stemming from a fatal 2015 shooting that left a 19-year-old man and a 55-year-old grandmother dead. Although no charges were filed against the officer — the Cook County States' Attorney's Office cited "insufficient evidence" — the city's Civilian Office of Police Accountability called the shooting unjustified and asked that Rialmo be fired.

The Chicago Police Board will now hold hearings to determine if the officer's actions Dec. 26, 2015, rise to the level of fireable offenses, according to the Chicago Tribune. While Chicago police Supt. Eddie Johnson has defended Rialmo's response to Quintonio LeGrier, who was wielding a baseball bat at the time, the city's top cop claims the officer didn't have reasonable belief that force was necessary in the accidental shooting of Bettie Jones, the report added.

Rialmo also allegedly did not requalify to carry a Taser, the report stated. Following the shooting, the officer had been placed on paid administrative duties, but he will be suspended without pay, the report added.

In the 2015 incident, Rialmo shot and killed LeGrier, an engineering student at Northern Illinois University, at a West Garfield Park home after responding to a 911 call that the teen had been threatening his father. The officer claimed he fired at LeGrier because the teen was swinging a metal bat at him.

The shots also struck Jones, who had opened the door for Rialmo. The grandmother and mother of five had been standing behind LeGrier when the Rialmo opened fire.

More Patch Coverage:

• Grandmother 'Tragically Killed' in Accidental Police Shooting: Chicago PD
  
• $16M Deal Reached In Fatal Shooting Of Grandma By Chicago Cop
  
• Jury's Verdict Against Chicago Cop In Shooting Lawsuit Reversed

In June, the City of Chicago reached a $16 million settlement with Jones' family. That happened on the eve of a wrongful death civil trial against Rialmo, which was filed by LeGrier's family.

After deliberating for more than three hours, the jurors in that case reached a verdict in favor of the LeGrier family. But the judge reversed that decision based on a signed special question by the jury — known as a special interrogatory — that determined Rialmo feared for his safety when he opened fire.

That question outweighed the panel's original verdict, according to the judge. The original verdict's reversal also meant erasing the $1.05 million in damages to LeGrier's family and estate.

More via the Chicago Tribune

Photo via Chicago Police Department | City of Chicago