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Mia Irizarry was about to celebrate her 24th birthday at Caldwell Woods Park when a man started reprimanding her, saying that her shirt was not American and asking her if she was an American citizen.
The incident, which occurred last month, was filmed. In this document, a parks officer can be seen doing nothing while Irizarry requests his help to deal with the man.
The agent, who was identified by Cook County Forest Reserves as Patrick Connor, resigned earlier this week.
But that is not enough, Irizarry said at a press conference on Friday.
"I will never hear about this man, this protector, his reason why my security – no, my life – had so little," she said, "why an American citizen does not could not reap the benefits of the police force when it was most needed. "
"What a coward to escape when her differences were brought to light, when justice had to be served," she said. added.
Irizarry said that what she really wanted from this experience was "justice" and excuses.
"I want the officer, or the ex-officer, to really be held responsible, whatever that sounds like," Irizarry said Friday. "And throughout this story, of all the people who have apologized to me, the only person who has not been, is him."
A lawyer at the Fraternal Labor Council of the Illinois Police College, who represents Connor, said this week that the video "does not look good" but warned that it did not tell not all history. The chief, Kelvin Pope, said that he did not know why Connor apparently did not show up initially, but that he had the impression that "it was not him had not given a just love at first sight "and that he had" a lot of remorse ".
But the officer resigned before investigators could ask him what happened at a disciplinary hearing, said Pope at a press conference Thursday.
& # 39; I was afraid for my safety & # 39;
G. Trybus related to the incident and accused him of hate crimes and aggression.
Trybus' lawyer, David B. Goldman, said Friday that his client had six teeth removed the day before the incident and was under the influence of pain. Irizarry also gave more light Friday on the incident.
Irizarry said that she had gone to the Caldwell Forest in Northwestern Chicago Park to prepare for her birthday party. She had rented part of the park, and Trybus and two others were there when she arrived. She said that she asked them to leave.
It was then that Trybus asked him twice if his shirt represented the Texas flag, Irizarry said. Twice she told him no, it was the Puerto Rican flag.
According to Irizarry, Trybus would then have risen to the table, saying that it had threatened her and prompted her to take out her phone and start recording
. stop for about two hours, she said.
In the pictures, we can see a man approaching Irizarry saying, "You should not wear this in the United States of America." He gets closer to her and asks, "Are you a citizen? Are you a citizen of the United States? "
Irizarry says that Puerto Rico is part of the United States and that man is approaching her several times. Park police to help: "I rent this area and he harasses me about the shirt I'm wearing."
Later, she says, "Officer, I feel very bad about it. please, officer? "I can honestly say that I feared for my safety," she said Friday.
Irizarry said she had not never knew racism at this point, but that she could empathize with the victims of the war. "But now, I have empathy," she says, "and that 's the way it is. is a completely different feeling. "
