Police Officer Who Killed Teen Last Week Also Fatally Shot Man In 2013
By Stephen Gossett in News on Nov 29, 2016 3:50PM
The police officer who fatally shot a black teenager on Wednesday night had previously shot and killed another black man, three years prior, CBS Chicago reports. In both cases, police did not recover a weapon from the scene, even though the sergeant who fatally shot both men claimed each victim was armed.
Sgt. John Poulos said that Kajuan Raye, 19, twice turned and pointed a gun during a foot chase on Wednesday night in West Englewood. Chicago Medical Examiner's Office ruled on Friday that Raye was killed by a gunshot to the back; and authorities still have not located Raye’s reported weapon.
In 2013, Poulos fatally shot Rickey Rozelle, 28, in Lincoln Park. According to police, Poulos, while off duty, spotted Rozelle attempting to break into an apartment. Poulos said he fired after Rozelle threatened him and “turned toward [him] with a shiny, metallic object in or near his hand,” according to police records cited by Better Government Association. Again, crews never found a weapon.
An Independent Police Review Authority investigation cleared Poulos, but Rozelle’s family is suing the sergeant and the city of Chicago.
The BGA reports that Poulos “told an emergency dispatcher he pulled the trigger because Rozelle wouldn’t show him his hands, possibly contradicting accounts by IPRA and police that quoted Poulos about the “shiny” object.” Also, the gun Poulos used in the shooting wasn’t his service weapon—it belonged to his brother—and an investigation that cleared Poulos in the 2013 shooting was spearheaded by Dt. Timothy McDermott, who was fired from the force after posing in a photo with rifles next to a black man who had deer antlers forced to his head, BGA noted.
Poulos was stripped of police powers pending an investigation following last week's fatal shooting. Raye's family is expected to file a lawsuit.