Cop's Order For Slain Guard To Drop Gun Wasn't Heard: Witness

ROBBINS, IL — As more details surface around the fatal shooting of an armed security guard by a Midlothian police officer outside a Robbins bar over the weekend, the account about how an argument between tavern patrons that escalated into a tragic exchange of gunfire is becoming murkier, not clearer. Another guard who witnessed Sunday's incident told The Associated Press that he did not hear the white officer order Jemel Roberson, who was black, to drop his gun before the officer opened fire.

The account by Dorian Myrickes — a security guard working at Manny's Blue Room that night and one of four people wounded — contradicts the initial findings by the Illinois State Police, which is investigating the police-involved shooting. Witnesses told investigators that the Midlothian officer began shooting after he ordered Roberson multiple times to drop his weapon, according to the preliminary report released by state police Tuesday night.

At the time, Roberson had been trying to subdue one of the individuals involved in the initial bar fight that had escalated into a shootout after a customer went outside and returned with a pistol, witnesses told investigators. Onlookers also were shouting at the officer to tell him that Roberson was a member of the bar's security detail.

“I never heard the cop demand [Roberson] to do anything, [but] everybody was telling him [Jemel] was security," Myrickes, 43, told the AP in a phone interview Wednesday from his hospital room, where he was recovering from a gunshot to the shoulder.

More Patch Coverage:

• Early Findings Of Police-Involved Shooting Of Guard Released
• Slain Guard Mourned: 'We're Broken Up Because We Have No Answers'
• Lawsuit Filed After Security Guard Fatally Shot By Midlothian Cop Outside Robbins Bar

A $1 million federal lawsuit filed by Roberson's family Monday also takes issue with the preliminary state police findings. According to the lawsuit, which is against the police officer in the shooting and the Village of Midlothian, Roberson was wearing a cap labeled "Security" at the time of the shooting. But the initial investigation report states that he was wearing "plain black clothing with no markings readily identifying him as a Security Guard."

The state police's Public Integrity Task Force is continuing to investigate Roberson's shooting at the request of the Midlothian Police Department. The Cook County Sheriff's Office is handling the original bar shootout that brought a response by police officers from Robbins, Midlothian and other suburban departments.

Since the shooting, an outpouring of support has been offered to the family of Roberson, who had a 9-month-old son. A GoFundMe page has been created to help raise money to pay for burial expenses for the Lane Tech High School grad who had hopes of becoming a police officer. With a goal of $150,000, the campaign raised more than $140,000 in three days.

Roberson's death also has sparked protests and vigils around the area. Family and friends gathered outside Manny's on Monday night for a candlelight event. The next day, a small group of demonstrators assembled outside the Midlothian Police Department, looking for answers to some of the questions hanging over the shooting and the investigation.

Gregory E. Kulis, the lawyer representing Roberson's family, has filed a motion to make sure law enforcement agencies keep any video footage connected to Sunday's shooting. The Illinois Legislative Black Caucus also has asked for the release of any body camera footage stemming from the incident.

“Far too often a member of the black community has been killed at the hands of police. We call for an impartial and transparent investigation of this case to continue to build trust between law enforcement and the communities they serve," the group said in a statement Wednesday.

“The Roberson family will never get Jemel back, but the least state police can do is conduct an investigation that lacks bias and sets us on a path to justice.”

More via The Associated Press

Jemel Roberson with his 9-month-old child. (Photo via GoFundMe)