CHICAGO — The family of the 22-year-old man shot and killed by CPD last month wants answers following the COPA release of bodycam footage on Wednesday.
Footage shows Anthony Alvarez was running away with a gun in his hand when he was shot to death by a Chicago police officer during a foot chase in Portage Park.
Family has set up a memorial at the scene where he was killed and wants answers to three questions. They’re wondering why Alvarez was being chased in the first place, why he was shot while running away and why hasn’t the Cook County Medical Examiner’s report been released.
They were questions Chicago Police Supt. David Brown declined to answer during a press conference at noon on Wednesday.
Hours after the footage was released to the public, Alvarez’s mother and his aunt returned to the corner where he was killed.
“We’re devastated, we’re mad, of all the videos we saw that there was no point of chasing Anthony, of killing him, so we are super mad at everything that happened,” they said.
One moment, Alvarez’s final words, haunts the family. After the officer shot him, Alvarez asked, “why are you shooting me?”
“That was the worst part. The worst part. I mean, he didn’t want to die. He even questioned the officers, why are you doing this to me,” aunt Norma Alvarez said.
Police said a gun was recovered at the scene.
As the video plays on loop in the minds of the family, they said they feel like they’re getting the run-around. The Civilian Office of Police Accountability recommended that the officer who killed Alvarez be relived of his police powers.
The family does not see that as justice.
“We ask for justice, I heard that COPA is saying something about removing him from his job. I don’t think that’s justice. He should be in jail because he killed a human being,” Norma Alvarez said.
Family, through their attorney, asked for privacy going forward and asked that any protests remain peaceful.