Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling addresses deadly officer-involved shooting in North Lawndale

CHICAGO — Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling spoke Monday regarding a deadly officer-involved shooting in North Lawndale.

In his first comments since the shooting, Snelling said a loss of life is never taken lightly.

“It’s always unfortunate when there’s a loss of life in these situations,” he said. “However, sometimes actions are necessary and to protect the lives of the innocent.”

The Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA) is now investigating after police officers shot and killed a man Sunday morning while responding to a burglary in the North Lawndale neighborhood.

Police officials said officers from the 10th District responded to a robbery in progress call in the 1800 block of South Central Park Avenue. Officers arrived and ran after the suspect. The suspect then allegedly fired shots at the officers, prompting them to return fire, killing the suspect.

Snelling claimed on Monday that he has not seen all of the video in the investigation.

“I have seen small parts of it. It’ll get an opportunity to view the whole thing at some point. It just shows you the brazenness of people with guns to get into a shootout with officers,” Snelling said.

Sunday’s investigation spanned a large perimeter. People attending a nearby church told WGN News they heard as many as 15 shots fired.

Snelling’s comments come as a new class of CPD officers graduated from the academy.

“When officers take on this job, they know the possibilities. They may not return home to their families, and yet they go out and do the job every single day,” Snelling said.

Police said a weapon was recovered at the scene, adding that the officers involved were taken to an area hospital for observation and will be placed on 30-day administrative leave, per department policy.