Charges Dropped Against Man Shot By Off-Duty Cop

By aaroncynic in News on Mar 15, 2013 9:05PM

Charges against Antonio Cross, who was shot in the hand by a Chicago Police officer last year during an incident that also killed Rekia Boyd, were dismissed earlier this week. Cross was charged with aggravated assault. DNAinfo reports Judge Clarence Burge dismissed the charges after detective Dante Servin, who fired the shots didn’t show up to court.

Servin allegedly drove up to the scene of a disturbance and identified himself as an officer. The detective maintains that Cross had a weapon, so he opened fire. Cross was hit in the hand and Boyd was hit in the head and later died. The City Council approved a $4.5 million settlement in a lawsuit this week.

After his hearing, Cross said, “He shot his gun for no reason, and that girl lost her life. I’ve been to jail. Be a man, accept responsibility.” Cross also stated that Servin was intoxicated when he confronted the group of people in Douglass Park the night he and Boyd were shot. “I looked in his eyes. I told him ‘we don’t have no drugs; get your crack ass out of here,’” Cross said. He also stated along with another witness the detective had a gun in his lap when he arrived on scene.

Benjamin Starks, Cross’ attorney, told ABC7, “This has been a farce all along. They knew they were not going to go forward, but they kept up the charade.” Detective Servin still remains on administrative duty since the incident, and the State’s Attorney’s office had no comment as to whether criminal charges would be forthcoming.