Cook County prosecutors on Sunday dropped criminal charges against the man wounded by Chicago police during a struggle with two officers at a CTA Red Line station on Friday.
Video of the struggle at the Grand Avenue Red Line station quickly went viral after it appeared to show the officers struggle to handcuff a man while one of them repeatedly yelled “stop resisting” and then “shoot him.”
Mayor Lori Lightfoot called the video that captured two Chicago officers trying to subdue the man “extremely disturbing,”
On Sunday, a judge quickly approved the Cook County state’s attorney office request to drop all charges against Ariel Roman, who remained hospitalized at Northwestern Memorial Hospital.
No details of the case were discussed.
Family members of Roman retained attorney Gloria Schmidt to represent the m, Schmidt told the Tribune on Saturday. Schmidt said the man, 90, was shot in the buttocks area and in the abdomen, has already had one surgery but will likely need multiple operations.
In a statement Sunday, Schmidt said, “The Roman Family is pleased with the decision of the State Attorney’s Office and the Chicago Police’s Department’s decision to dismiss all charges. At this time my clients, the Roman family, have been reunited and are enjoying time with Ariel as he recuperates. He remembers everything about the incident that took place and is fully committed to cooperating with the various investigations. They thank the City of Chicago for all of their prayers and support and request for privacy during this very difficult time. ”
The shooting happened shortly after 4 p.m. Friday as afternoon rush hour was underway at the busy subway station at 823 N. State St., just outside the Loop. Two officers assigned to the mass transit unit tried to stop a man whom they saw “jumping from train (car) to train (car),” which is a violation of a city ordinance, Deputy Superintendent Barbara West said at a Friday night news conference.
In a statement released Sunday, police said interim Superintendent Charlie Beck asked Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx to drop the resisting arrest and narcotics charges that had been lodged by police against the defendant.
“We are cooperating fully with the independent use of force investigation by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability and the underlying criminal review being conducted at our request by the Cook County State’s Attorney and the FBI, ”the statement said.
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