Police shot an 18-year-old man who they say pulled a gun after crashing a stolen car into several vehicles in the West Englewood neighborhood early Saturday.
Officers from the Area South Gun Team were driving east in the 1300 block of West 73rd Street when they became suspicious of a vehicle attempting to park, said Deputy Chief Dana Alexander. They did a vehicle check and discovered it had been stolen, Alexander said.
The man drove off as officers got out of their vehicle to question him. The man then crashed into “several” parked vehicles, including the officers’ car, before getting stuck on one of the vehicles he hit, Alexander said.
According to Pat Camden, spokesman for the Fraternal Order of Police, two other people were in the stolen vehicle at the time. One of them, a woman who was in the front seat, jumped into the rear passenger seat as officers surrounded the vehicle.
One officer, standing outside the stolen vehicle on the rear passenger side, ordered them to show their hands, which they refused to do, Camden said. The officer then broke the rear passenger window in an attempt to get to the people in the vehicle.
The driver then began to reach into his coat, officers told him to stop and he started to pull out a gun, Alexander said.
“They can see the butt of the gun,” Camden added.
Local
One officer then shot the man and he was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn in serious condition, but is expected to survive, Camden said. The woman who jumped into the back seat was also taken to a local hospital with minor injuries.
Police recovered a 9 mm semi-automatic handgun, Camden said.
No officers were injured, according to a statement from police.
