Fatal Chicago Police Shooting Of Maurice Granton Jr. Disputed By Victimâs Family
Conflicting accounts were surrounding a police shooting that killed a Black man in Chicago Wednesday night, with some suggesting officers were trying to cover it up.
What police described to the Chicago Tribune as âan armed encounter between the offender and policeâ in the Bronzeville section of the city was actually an execution, with officers shooting Maurice Granton, Jr., in the back as he ran away, according to reports on social media.
Adding to the confusion was police claiming that Granton had a gun and pointed it at them before running, but Grantonâs family has said the gun that was ârecoveredâ did not belong to him.
Since when does running validate somebody getting shot? Joanna Varnado, Grantonâs sister, asked rhetorically. “I donât understand that. Youâre not being offensive, youâre being defensive.”
Granton, 24, was the father of two daughters.
I just want to know what the real story is,”Varnado told the Tribune. âIf it was misconduct, I want justice. My brother was 24 years old. He loved his girls. That’s all he lived for, was his kids.”
The mother of Granton’s daughters also said he did not carry a gun.
“He didnât have no gun on him. He has two kids to live for, so he wouldn’t do anything dumb. He come home to his kids every night,â Tayshia Shaw told CBS Chicago. âThatâs not his personality. He wouldn’t even chance his life doing that, knowing he has two very young kids to come home to.”
According to a USA Today report from 2016, âBlack people have been killed in police chases at a rate nearly three times higher than everyone else.â
If reports of Granton being shot in the back turn out to be true, the officer(s) who shot him could be indicted for murder charges, if historical precedence is any indication. Former North Charleston Police Officer Michael Slager was convicted and sentenced to 20 years in prison for shooting Walter Scott in the back. At the time of the shooting, Scott was fleeing on foot.
The Chicago Police Department has long has a reputation for police brutality and overall corruption, including some new wrongful convictions that were reported by the Associated Press just this week.
âWeâve had all kinds of police corruption, weâve had police torture cases, but weâve never had so many cases where there is clear evidence that police actually set people up for crimes they didnât commit,â Marshall Hatch, a minister and activist in Chicago, told the AP on Sunday.
