Killing of Paul O'Neal
2016 police killing in Illinois / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
On July 28, 2016, 18-year-old Paul O'Neal was shot in the back by Chicago Police Department officers following a grand theft auto chase.[1] O'Neal had struck two police cars, a parked car, while operating a stolen Jaguar. Police say that O'Neal, who was unarmed, fled from the vehicle after the chase and refused to stop.[2] The shooting was classified by the medical examiner as a homicide. The three officers who discharged their weapons were removed from duty following a preliminary investigation. Following an investigation, no criminal charges were brought against the officers involved.[3]
Date | July 28, 2016; 8 years ago (2016-07-28) |
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Time | 7:23 p.m. to 7:25 p.m. |
Location | 7400 block of South Merrill Avenue, Chicago, Illinois, U.S. |
Type | Homicide by shooting, police killing |
Filmed by | Police body and dash cameras |
Participants |
|
Outcome | Coughlin and Torres fired in 2020 |
Deaths | Paul O'Neal, aged 18 |
Charges | None |
Litigation | Wrongful death lawsuit against the city of Chicago by O'Neal’s mother settled for $2.25 million |
The Los Angeles Times notes Chicago's use-of-force policy specifically prohibits police from shooting into a car when the vehicle represents the only danger.[4] However, this policy is not absolute and expressly applies "unless such force is reasonably necessary to prevent death or great bodily harm to the sworn member or to another person."[5]
Chicago police released vehicle and body-worn camera video of the shooting on August 5, 2016.[2] Prior to the release, the agency warned that civil unrest could follow.[6]
In 2020, officers Michael Coughlin and Jose Torres were fired for their roles in the killing. Jose Diaz, however, was not fired.[7] Later that year, the city of Chicago settled a wrongful death lawsuit filed by O'Neal's mother for $2.25 million (equivalent to $2.65 million in 2023).[8][9]