I told my cousin this will be a groundbreaking case in that if the police officer is awarded money from the estate over this alleged 'Emotional distress' it will open the door for lawsuits around the country in every profession. A customer service agent can sue the a customer who threatens them or curses them or subjects them to emotional distress. A doctor or Nurse can sue their patient for the same. A dog catcher can sue the family of a dog who bites them. The mailman can sue the family whose walkway he slips and falls down on. This can go so many different ways.
I have no doubt that blood thirsty, racist white people will applaud the lawsuit from this police officer but it can come back to haunt them. They have the MOST MONEY. They will be the LARGEST TARGET. Their kids do dumb shit all the time. Rich white kids (and poor ones too) get into scrapes with the law on an ongoing basis. Their parents are LOADED. If they become combative, curse, use racial epithets, etc. a favorable ruling on this type of case will open up the door to others suing the hell out of their families, etc.
This should be a very interesting case.
This should be a very interesting case.
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In a counterclaim filed last week, Officer Robert Rialmo alleges the 19-year-old whom he shot dead the day after Christmas assaulted him with a baseball bat and caused him to suffer trauma. He's seeking more than $10 million in punitive damages from LeGrier's estate.
Authorities have said LeGrier died from multiple gunshot wounds after the December 26 shooting. A neighbor, Bettie Jones, 55, was also killed. Police have described Jones as a victim who was "accidentally struck and tragically killed." They've described LeGrier as a "combative subject."
Father: No one helped my son after he was shot by cops 07:59
LeGrier's father and Jones' family have filed wrongful death lawsuits over the shooting.
The officer's lawsuit says Jones' death was LeGrier's fault, not his.
"The fact that LeGrier's actions had forced Officer Rialmo to end LeGrier's life, and to accidentally take the innocent life of Bettie Jones, has caused, and will continue to cause, Officer Rialmo to suffer extreme emotional trauma," the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit provides the officer's moment-by-moment explanation of the incident, stating that the teen swung a baseball bat at him twice, barely missing both times.
The officer had his gun holstered and backed up as he shouted orders for LeGrier to drop the bat, the court document says. It was only after LeGrier continued his approach and ignored the officer's commands that Rialmo opened fire, according to the lawsuit.
Making a point
The shooting came as Chicago officials were in hot water for what critics have called a police culture of "shoot first and ask questions later." As details about the case emerged, Mayor Rahm Emanuel said there were "serious questions" about what happened and ordered changes in how city police officers are trained to handle calls involving people who may have mental health problems.
Chicago mayor: 'Painful and honest reckoning' needed after police shootings
Rialmo's lawsuit gives the officer's side in the controversial case, saying the officer opened fire after LeGrier "took a full swing" at his head, "missing it by inches."
"He told me that he felt the breeze of the bat passing in front of his face, it was that close," attorney Joel Brodsky told CNN affiliate WBBM-TV.
In a statement on Facebook, Brodsky said Rialmo "was taken aback by the speed in which the family of Mr. LeGrier rushed to file a lawsuit."
"He wants to make the point that having a relative killed in an officer-involved shooting is not the same thing as winning the lottery," Brodsky said. "Only the few cases of truly excessive use and abuse of force should be subject to legal actions."
Attorney for estate: Officer is 'trying to deflect'
Bill Foutris, an attorney who represents LeGrier's estate and the 19-year-old's father, said he had a good reason to file a lawsuit against the city quickly: preserving evidence.
"As a result of filing the lawsuit quickly we have gotten well over 40 DVDs of evidence, including police cams and police reports -- all things we would not have had if the suit was not filed when it was," he said. "It would have taken six months to get some of that evidence."
The officer, Foutris said, is trying to steer the conversation away from what happened that day.
"This counterclaim is an attempt to deflect from what the officer did," Foutris said. "He shot a teen four times in the back."
Differing accounts
Chicago's Independent Police Review Authority is investigating the shooting, which happened after officers responded to 911 calls from LeGrier and his father asking for help.
Rialmo's account of what happened contrasts with descriptions in the lawsuits filed by the LeGrier and Jones families.
Antonio LeGrier told CNN he called police after he heard his son.........
The Chicago police officer who killed Quintonio LeGrier has filed a lawsuit against the teen's estate.
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| Quintonio LeGrier |
In a counterclaim filed last week, Officer Robert Rialmo alleges the 19-year-old whom he shot dead the day after Christmas assaulted him with a baseball bat and caused him to suffer trauma. He's seeking more than $10 million in punitive damages from LeGrier's estate.
Authorities have said LeGrier died from multiple gunshot wounds after the December 26 shooting. A neighbor, Bettie Jones, 55, was also killed. Police have described Jones as a victim who was "accidentally struck and tragically killed." They've described LeGrier as a "combative subject."
Father: No one helped my son after he was shot by cops 07:59
LeGrier's father and Jones' family have filed wrongful death lawsuits over the shooting.
The officer's lawsuit says Jones' death was LeGrier's fault, not his.
"The fact that LeGrier's actions had forced Officer Rialmo to end LeGrier's life, and to accidentally take the innocent life of Bettie Jones, has caused, and will continue to cause, Officer Rialmo to suffer extreme emotional trauma," the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit provides the officer's moment-by-moment explanation of the incident, stating that the teen swung a baseball bat at him twice, barely missing both times.
The officer had his gun holstered and backed up as he shouted orders for LeGrier to drop the bat, the court document says. It was only after LeGrier continued his approach and ignored the officer's commands that Rialmo opened fire, according to the lawsuit.
Making a point
The shooting came as Chicago officials were in hot water for what critics have called a police culture of "shoot first and ask questions later." As details about the case emerged, Mayor Rahm Emanuel said there were "serious questions" about what happened and ordered changes in how city police officers are trained to handle calls involving people who may have mental health problems.
Chicago mayor: 'Painful and honest reckoning' needed after police shootings
Rialmo's lawsuit gives the officer's side in the controversial case, saying the officer opened fire after LeGrier "took a full swing" at his head, "missing it by inches."
"He told me that he felt the breeze of the bat passing in front of his face, it was that close," attorney Joel Brodsky told CNN affiliate WBBM-TV.
In a statement on Facebook, Brodsky said Rialmo "was taken aback by the speed in which the family of Mr. LeGrier rushed to file a lawsuit."
"He wants to make the point that having a relative killed in an officer-involved shooting is not the same thing as winning the lottery," Brodsky said. "Only the few cases of truly excessive use and abuse of force should be subject to legal actions."
Attorney for estate: Officer is 'trying to deflect'
Bill Foutris, an attorney who represents LeGrier's estate and the 19-year-old's father, said he had a good reason to file a lawsuit against the city quickly: preserving evidence.
"As a result of filing the lawsuit quickly we have gotten well over 40 DVDs of evidence, including police cams and police reports -- all things we would not have had if the suit was not filed when it was," he said. "It would have taken six months to get some of that evidence."
The officer, Foutris said, is trying to steer the conversation away from what happened that day.
"This counterclaim is an attempt to deflect from what the officer did," Foutris said. "He shot a teen four times in the back."
Differing accounts
Chicago's Independent Police Review Authority is investigating the shooting, which happened after officers responded to 911 calls from LeGrier and his father asking for help.
Rialmo's account of what happened contrasts with descriptions in the lawsuits filed by the LeGrier and Jones families.
Antonio LeGrier told CNN he called police after he heard his son.........
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