Family speaks after being awarded large settlement for wrongful police raid

CHICAGO (WGN) – A Chicago family is speaking out for the first time after being awarded a massive settlement for a wrongful police raid in 2017.

The Mendez family said they’ve been waiting nearly eight years for this day.

After suing the Chicago Police Department for wrongly raiding their home, they’re now receiving $2.5 million from the city.

During the civil trial which was held earlier this year, prosecutors played body camera footage from the 2017 raid.

Gilbert and Hester Mendez said they were inside their apartment when six police officers broke into their home and pointed guns at the couple and their two young children.

Court documents said the officers also handcuffed Gilbert as they searched the apartment. His wife and kids were heard pleading with police not to shoot him.

It turns out, the person police were looking for actually lived in the apartment upstairs.

The family said the situation left them traumatized and has had long-term effects on their mental health.

“I’m always checking the locks. Before I go to bed, I set the locks. I set the alarms. Like my son said, we have an [alarm system] and then as I walk through the house and stuff, just going downstairs I check the locks again, knowing I just checked them,” Gilbert said.

For years, the family has been sharing their story in hopes it will lead to policing reform.

In 2019, Gov. JB Pritzker signed the Peter Mendez Act, named after the family’s oldest son, which requires police officers in the state to receive training on how to interact with children while their parent is being detained.

CPD has also revised its search warrant policy several times since then.

While CPD now encourages officers to avoid handcuffing, questioning or pointing guns at children during the execution of search warrants, it is not prohibited.

“I think it affects everyone. These are the people that say ‘protect and serve.’ They say, you know, ‘we are here for you,’ but in reality they raided an innocent family, my family, and my parents always say, ‘Respect the police. They’re here to help,’ but when [something like this] happens, all the trust is gone,” Peter said.

After the incident and settlement, lawyers representing the family said they’d still like to see stricter policies.