A police pursuit that ended in a fatal crash on the Far South Side is the subject of a lawsuit filed Friday by two men who pleaded guilty to theft charges in the case.
The pursuit began after an Arby’s restaurant manager was robbed of a bank deposit just before 11 a.m. July 1 at 191st Street and Harlem Avenue in Tinley Park, according to Tinley Park Police. The suspects’ gold sedan was spotted by Illinois State Police on Interstate 57 and pursued as it drove toward Chicago.
Chicago Police joined the chase as it left the highway, and an unmarked police SUV slammed into the suspect’s car at 124th Street and Union Avenue, police said. Four officers in the SUV were injured in the crash.
Two of the men in the gold sedan died, the Cook County medical examiner’s office said. Ronald Arrington, 22, of Chicago, was taken to Stroger Hospital where he was pronounced dead, and Jimmy Malone, 26, of an unknown address, was taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital and died. Both of their deaths were ruled accidental.
Two other men who were in the sedan — Michael Cokes, 26, of Alsip, and Isiah Stevenson, 25, of Matteson — later pleaded guilty to theft and were sentenced to two years in prison, according to Will County court records.
On Friday, Stevenson and Cokes filed a three-count suit against the city of Chicago and the officer who was driving the SUV, according to court documents. The men are seeking more than $150,000.
Stevenson and Matteson claim the city was willful and wanton when it failed to stop the officers during the pursuit and disregarded the safety of others, according to the suit. They also accuse the officer of negligence in his pursuit of their vehicle.
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Both men suffered physical and emotional injuries as a result of the crash, the suit said. They continue to incur costs for medical treatment and are responsible for expenses related to the crash. They asked for a jury trial.
City Law Department spokesman Bill McCaffrey said the city has not received the lawsuit and couldn’t comment.
