Attorney for man shot says he’s “appalled” by decision; points to video that contradicts what the officer alleges occurred.
Chicago’s Civilian Office of Police Accountability has found an off-duty Chicago Police officer was justified for the March 2021 shooting a man he thought was trying to force his way into his apartment.
But there’s a dispute over what happened.
The attorney for the man who was shot said he was “appalled” and “mystified” by COPA’s ruling because the officer’s sworn statements sit in contrast with what surveillance video shows happened.
Feeling out of the loop? We'll catch you up on the Chicago news you need to know. Sign up for the weekly Chicago Catch-Up newsletter here.
“You don’t see what the officer described, and it certainly didn’t justify being shot in the head,” attorney Thomas Glasgow told NBC 5 Investigates.
In its ruling, COPA found the incident demonstrated that the man who was shot, Jose Mendoza, sought to enter Officer Iwan Smith’s apartment “in a violent manner and that Officer Smith reasonably feared an assault or further violence.”
In its final ruling report, published Friday, COPA found that use of deadly force by Officer Smith “was within Department policy” adding that “based on the totality of the circumstances, COPA finds it more likely than not that Officer Smith was authorized under CPD policy to use deadly force.”
Local
But Glasgow says surveillance video from the apartment complex does not show the events as described by officer.
“What this looks like to be honest with you is COPA giving an officer a pass,” Glasgow said in an interview with NBC 5 Investigates.
The shooting happened in the early morning hours of March 31, 2021 at a northwest side apartment where Officer Iwan Smith was living. Glasgow admits his client was drunk and was attempting to stay with a friend when he tried to enter Officer Smith’s home by mistake.
In his statement to the COPA investigators six days after the March 31, 2021 shooting, Officer Smith said: “I didn’t know what was going to happen. I didn’t know if he was going to get – what he – if he had any weapons on him. I didn’t know if he was on anything. I didn’t know what he wanted to do in my apartment. I didn’t know if he was going to be able to overpower me, take my weapon, harm family. I had no idea what he was trying to do.”
Surveillance video shows Mendoza enter the vestibule of the apartment building around 1:13 a.m.
Surveillance video from the apartment building shows Mendoza standing in the hallway, unsteady at times, alternating between sitting on the stairs and standing.
Nine minutes pass before he attempts to enter the door belonging to Officer Smith’s apartment. The camera's view is slightly obstructed, according to the report.
Mendoza at one point crouches down, where he remains until the door appears to open. He then stands up and seconds later falls to the ground with a gunshot wound to the head.
The COPA report also notes that after Officer Smith shot Mendoza, he “performed a protective pat-down … and determined that he did not have any weapons.”
If that did occur, the video posted to the COPA website does not appear to show that.
And Mendoza’s attorney says it didn’t happen.
“The video clearly shows that that never ever occurred,” Glasgow said.
According to body camera footage, Smith told officers his version of events:
“He knocked on my door, as I approached to open it, he pushed it in and I tried to close it. He just pushed; he forced his way in. I didn’t know…”
When asked if Mendoza had a weapon, Smith can be heard saying: “He didn’t have a weapon on him, for what I felt he didn’t have a weapon on him.”
Glasgow declined NBC 5 Investigates’ request for us to interview Mendoza, who still faces a criminal trespass charge and a hearing next month. His federal civil lawsuit is also pending.
His mother, Rachel Mendoza, said the incident has changed her son.
“He can’t even see, part of the side is paralyzed. He is not the same, he will never be the same,” Rachel Mendoza said.
The city’s law department, which represents Smith and the Chicago Police Department, declined to comment.
NBC 5 Investigates also reached out three times on Tuesday to COPA to ask to questions about their ruling, but we have not heard back just yet.
