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Defenseless: 13-Year-Old Adam Toledo Seen Apparently Unarmed Before Police Fatally Shoot Him

3 mins read

Residents are protesting in the streets against the unjust police killing of Adam Toledo after body camera footage of the incident showed the young teen was defenseless and unarmed during the encounter with officers.

The video recordings showed the 13-year-old victim raising his hands after being chased by a police officer. His hands appeared to have been empty, but the pursuer immediately shot him in the chest. The incident happened in Little Village last month.

Unjust Police Killing

More than 50 people gathered in Millennium Park to march downtown and protest against the violent injustice. They chanted “lock the cop up!” similar to the slogans that were shouted in last summer’s protests.

Toledo’s cousin, Jose Herrera, drove around the area and played Banda music on speakers while waving a Mexican flag. He said Chicago police officers took his flag and shattered it. “Those cops took my flag and broke it! I’m out here protesting the killing of my cousin. He doesn’t and didn’t deserve any of this,” he said, showing the broken staff in his hands.

Herrera said seeing the video of Toledo’s last moments broke his heart. “My family is shattered right now, and, like this flag, it came at the hands of the police,” he said.

Activist and former mayoral candidate for the city of Chicago talked about the incident and tore down a piece of police tape at the entrance of a news conference in front of Public Safety Headquarters. He demanded the removal of the Police Department and urged Mayor Lori Lightfoot to step down from her position because of her mishandling of the incident.

Green said Lightfoot put Toledo in a bad light after he was killed. He also criticized the mayor for her peace appeals before the video of the March 29 shooting surfaced. He revealed he had plans to march to the mayor’s residence as part of a Friday protest centered in Logan Square, Sun Times reported.

“Lori Lightfoot herself said, ‘Oh, we need to figure out why he had a gun. He shouldn’t have been out there. Now you want to say let’s calm the city down. But when do you say let’s calm these killings down that the Police Department are doing?”

Danielle Joyce Ong

Danielle is a local journalist with a passion for exploring stories related to crime and politics. When Danielle isn't busy writing or reading, she is usually exploring the great outdoors and all the hiking trails in the Bay.