[Onthebarricades] US: near uprising after cops murder teen

[Andy]

http://www.infoshop.org/inews/article.php?story=20070807112635189

      Chicago: Near Riot After Cops Kill Teenager     
            Tuesday, August 07 2007 @ 11:26 AM PDT
            Contributed by: Patrokolos
            Views: 190  
            Chicago Police on Monday evening shot and killed a teen on the West Side who police say pointed a gun at an officer.

            Chicago: Near Riot After Cops Kill Teenager

            Chicago Sun Times

            Chicago Police on Monday evening shot and killed a teen on the West Side who police say pointed a gun at an officer.

            "The officer could clearly see a gun in his hand, tells him to drop the gun, and he points the gun at the officer," police spokesman Pat Camden said of the moments before the shooting in North Lawndale at 1141 S. Mozart.

            The fatal shooting triggered a near-riot by neighborhood residents disputing the police version of the incident, which brought several hundred officers to the scene from police districts citywide.

            Ericka Hale, 18, one of a crowd of hundreds who later marched to the Harrison and Kedzie police station for a protest and prayer vigil, had a different version of the shooting.

            "The boy was running away from them [police]. By the time he got to the garbage can, the police shot him," Hale said.

            Relatives identified the teen as Aaron Harrison, 18.

            The Office of Professional Standards is investigating the shooting.

            According to police, the incident occurred about 8 p.m., when Special Operations Section officers on patrol saw a group of young men standing in front of a grocery store.

            "One of the individuals was holding his waist and kind of acting unusual," Camden said. "When the officers got out of the car to attempt to talk to him, he took off running."

            Police say one officer chased the teen into an alley, where the officer allegedly shot him in the left shoulder in self-defense. Camden said police recovered a 9mm semiautomatic pistol.

            However, witnesses said the teen never pointed a gun at police.

            Witnesses said Harrison and five friends were in front of the store when police pulled up, and they ran. Jason Hunley, 25, said police followed Harrison a block away, and one allegedly fired shots as Harrison ran.

            This is the second time in a week a man has died at the hands of police. Gefrey Johnson, 42, died after police shot him with a Taser on Saturday.

            As a crowd of hundreds gathered afterward and swelled, Lashunna Carter, 16, the teen's girlfriend, was hysterical, repeating: "The police just shot him! They just shot him!"

            Some in the crowd said Harrison wasn't involved with gangs or drugs but belonged to a hip-hop dance group. "He was just a hip-hop kid. He wasn't doing anything wrong," said Brenda Blackman, 48.

            The crowd grew increasingly volatile, as more police were summoned to line a four-block area. Bottles were thrown at police, and police confirmed a newspaper photographer's cameras were broken by police, but reported no arrests.

            At the station, the crowd chanted: "No justice, no peace! No racist police!" Police cordoned them away from the building, and reporters observed some officers physically pushing some marchers. 

            http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/500032,CST-NWS-copshoot07.article 
     
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