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As Chicago Police Officer Ella French was fatally injured on the ground, his body camera continued to roll and captured the suspect with the gun still in hand, stepping over her and her injured partner as he was fleeing the scene, according to a prosecutor.
A still image of the footage was obtained by Chicago’s ABC station WLS with another frightening image of the Frenchman in the last moments of her life standing at the driver’s side door of a car that she and her two partners s ‘were arrested just before shots were fired, police and prosecutors said.
French, 29, is the first Chicago police officer since 2018 killed in the line of duty and the city’s first female police officer to be killed in the line of duty since 1988, officials said.
In the first seven months of 2021, 44 law enforcement officers across the country were killed in the line of duty, a 41.9 percent increase over the same period in 2020, according to preliminary FBI data.
Chicago Police Superintendent David Brown on Tuesday announced the arrest of Monty Morgan, 21, and his brother, Eric Morgan, 19, in the murder of French, who joined the police department in 2018 after previously working for the Cook County Sheriff’s Office.
“This is the first step towards justice as we work to honor a deceased officer and his partner,” Brown said at a press conference.
Brown identified Monty Morgan as the alleged gunman who opened fire on French and his partner, 39, who remains in critical condition with multiple gunshot wounds, including one to the eye lodged in his brain, according to the court records filed in the Case.
Monty Morgan has been charged with one count of first degree murder, two counts of attempted murder of a police officer, one count of unlawful use of a weapon by a criminal and one count of aggravated with a weapon by a criminal.
Eric Morgan, who police say was driving the French car and his partners arrested, has been charged with one count of aggravated illegal use of a weapon, one count of illegal use of a weapon by a criminal and one count of obstructing justice.
It was not known if the Morgan brothers had lawyers. Eric Morgan first appeared in court on Tuesday, while his brother, who was shot and wounded by police before being taken into custody, remains in hospital, police said.
Brown also said the gun used in the shooting was traced to an Indiana straw buyer who allegedly used false information on a federal form to purchase the gun from a licensed gun dealer in Hammond. , Indiana, on behalf of Eric Morgan.
The announcement came about a month after Brown assembled a team of 50 agents to target gun dealers, straw buyers, unscrupulous gun dealers and anyone who facilitates the flow of illegal weapons in the city of Chicago.
John Lausch Jr., the US attorney for the Northern District of Illinois, identified Jamel Danzy, 29, of Hammond, Indiana, as the alleged purchaser of the weapon used to kill French.
Danzy has been charged with Conspiracy to Violate Federal Firearms Laws, including the knowingly transferring and surrendering a firearm to an out-of-state resident, of knowingly doing a false written statement to acquire a firearm and knowingly dispose of a firearm to a convicted felon.
“Straw buyers and gun traffickers allow violence with deadly consequences,” Lausch said in a statement. “Tackling violent crime is a top priority in our office, and we are committed to holding those who engage in illicit firearms transactions to account. “
Danzy appeared in federal court in Chicago on Wednesday afternoon. It was not clear whether he had retained a lawyer or whether he was waiting for a lawyer to be appointed to him by the court.
The shooting took place in Chicago’s West Englewood neighborhood, where French and two other Chicago police officers assigned to the department’s Community Safety Team were patrolling as part of an effort to focus on high crime areas. .
At around 9 p.m., French and his two partners arrested Eric Morgan on suspicion of driving a car with expired tags, police said.
Police body camera image obtained by WLS shows French pointing a flashlight into the vehicle as Eric Morgan sat in the driver’s seat next to a woman, who has not been charged in shooting.
Eric Morgan complied with French’s orders to get out of the car and hand over the keys, according to prosecution documents filed by prosecutors in the case. Monty Morgan, sitting in the backseat, was reportedly uncooperative when exiting the car, holding a cell phone in one hand and a drink in the other, according to the documents.
According to court documents, Monty Morgan “began to physically pull his arms away from the officers” and as they attempted to take control of him, Eric Morgan reportedly rushed forward. A 30-year-old officer involved in the incident ran after Eric Morgan while French and his other partner took care of Monty Morgan, court records show.
During a struggle, Monty Morgan apparently broke free and partially re-entered the car, according to the documents.
French and his partner had their guns in a holster when Monty Morgan allegedly pulled a gun from his belt and opened fire, prosecution documents say. French was shot in the back of the neck, according to the documents.
Both officers fell to the ground, but their partner who was chasing Eric Morgan returned to the scene when he heard gunshots and allegedly engaged in a shootout with Monty Morgan, shooting the suspect in the abdomen and the left arm, according to court documents. An injured Monty Morgan was seen handing the gun to his brother, who also returned to the scene and fled with his brother, according to the documents.
After a brief search, Monty Morgan was found lying on the ground near the scene of the shooting and his brother was later found in the neighborhood and arrested. A .22 caliber handgun believed to have been used in the shooting was found in a backyard near where Eric Morgan was arrested, court documents show.
Risa Lanier, the Cook County deputy chief prosecutor, confirmed at a press conference that Monty Morgan was seen in body camera video stepping over injured officers.
“Defendant Monty Morgan is seen on video exiting this cockpit holding a pistol in his left hand. He is seen looking around as he stands over these officers,” Lanier said. “He then pulls away from the camera and after a few moments he can be seen on (…) the camera come back into view and step over the bodies of these officers as they lay in the street.”
The shooting came as Chicago police faced escalating gun violence in the city. Chicago Police Department crime statistics show that as of August 9, more than 2,100 people have been shot in the city this year, a 12% increase from the same time period as in 2020. The city also recorded 474 homicides this year compared to 464 this year. times last year, an increase of 2%.
Police said on Wednesday Morgan’s mother was arrested Tuesday as she traveled to Christ Hospital in neighboring Oak Lawn and attempted to visit her son. An Oak Lawn police official told ABC News on Wednesday the mother ended up scuffling with hospital security officers after she allegedly found herself on the floor where her son was being treated.
During this time, several vigils were organized for French, including one at the place where she and her partner were shot.
“She was brave, spontaneous,” Chicago Police Officer Erica Hernandez told WLS, fighting back tears. “She was an amazing person to be around.”
Brown asked people to pray for French’s family and for the recovery of his partner, a married father of a young child, who is fighting for his life in a hospital.
“I ask Chicago to give our police a hug today,” Brown said at Tuesday’s press conference, “and encourage them to continue their great work to protect us all.”
He added that although illegal gun recoveries are one of the most potentially dangerous aspects of policing, Chicago police have seized 7,536 firearms this year, an increase of 23. % compared to the same period in 2020.
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