CPD

Charges Dropped Against Woman Violently Arrested at Brickyard Mall, Attorney Says

Charges against a woman who was violently arrested in an incident caught on video in May at Chicago's Brickyard Mall have been dropped, her attorney said Tuesday.

Charges of disorderly conduct against Mia Wright were dropped Monday, the law firm representing Wright said in a statement, calling the charges "baseless."

Wright's attorneys said she "sustained serious injuries including partial blindness to her right eye" in the incident on May 31 at the mall in the city's Belmont Cragin neighborhood.

Bystanders recorded cell phone video of the arrest that appeared to show multiple officers swarm a vehicle in the parking lot, break the car’s windows and pull out several people.

Wright said at the time that after she was thrown to the ground, the officer put his knee on her neck.

“All I thought about was what happened with George Floyd. It could have been another situation like that,” Wright said. “I didn’t do anything wrong.”

Wright’s mother and cousin were also taken out of the vehicle by police, but Wright was the only one arrested and charged with disorderly conduct.

Chicago police said officers observed her with three others, assembled for the purpose of using force or violence to disturb the peace. Wright denied she did anything wrong and claimed police had the wrong person.

She was also taken to a hospital after she said she was detained for 18 hours.

Days later, Wright’s attorney demanded a criminal investigation.

“If the individual tried to speed off, that’s a different story, but we all saw the video. They didn’t try to run,” family attorney Nenye Uche said. “Why use that kind of force if you’re not trying to provoke fear and chaos?”

Two officers involved in the arrest were relieved of their police powers pending an investigation into the incident, Chicago Police Supt. David Brown said in June, following the Civilian Office of Police Accountability's recommendation that he take action against the officers.

That announcement came after the Federal Bureau of Investigation said it was looking into the violent arrest that was captured on video, according to the Cook County State's Attorney's office.

"The Cook County State's Attorney's office has launched an investigation into possible criminal charges related to the incident at Brickyard Mall, " State's Attorney Kim Foxx said at a news conference.

"Our office is in communication with the attorney representing the family in the case, and also working with the FBI which has started their own investigation as well," she continued, adding, "We’ll look at the evidence and the law and see where it takes us."

Foxx clarified that the charges against the woman who was arrested were municipal ordinance charges filed by the city and not prosecuted by her office.

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