A fatal police-involved shooting has sparked unrest in Illinois this week after a Black man and his girlfriend were shot by an officer inspecting their parked car.
On Friday night, Chief Wayne Walles announced the termination of a Hispanic officer for “multiple policies and procedure violations,” in connection with the Tuesday shooting death of Marcellis Stinnette, 19.
The identity of the cop was not released but police said that he fired shots at the victim and his girlfriend, who was behind the wheel when they began moving towards him as he inspected their vehicle.
Stinette’s girlfriend, Tafara Williams, told her mom at the hospital where she remains since the incident, that she begged for her life and put her hands up.
“When I got there, she said, ‘Momma, they just shot us for nothing,’” Clifftina Johnson said. “My daughter said she put her hand up and if she didn’t put her hand up, she said ‘Momma, I would be dead.’”
On Thursday, Waukegan residents flooded the streets protesting the shooting and asking the Department of Justice to release the body-cam footage of the events.
“I am confident in the work being done by the Illinois State Police and welcome the assistance of the FBI,” Lake County State’s Attorney Michael Nerheim said.
“As I have said before, once the investigation is concluded, all the evidence will be reviewed and a final decision will be made with respect to any potential charges.”
