Two people were arrested Friday night as hundreds of protesters gathered in Logan Square demanding justice for Adam Toledo, 13, who was shot and killed by a Chicago police officer last month in Little Village.
Anthony McCullom III, 20, was charged with misdemeanor reckless conduct for allegedly being part of a large crowd seen pushing and shoving officers just before 10 p.m. in the 2600 block of North Kedzie Avenue, according to police.
McCullom’s mother, Black Lives Matter Chicago Executive Director Amika Tendaji, said her son was trying to stop officers from attacking protesters when he was put in handcuffs.
“There was nothing that happened out there that warranted the arrest of any young people who were out there fighting for their lives,” Tendaji said. “They [the police] were brutal to those protesters and there are no signs of it slowing down.”
Also arrested during the protest was Graham Lefauve, 18, who allegedly rode by on a bicycle and spat on an officer who was in an unmarked squad car, police said. Lefauve was charged with misdemeanor battery.
The protest was peaceful except for a few dustups toward the end of the night.
It was the city’s first major demonstration since authorities released videos of Adam’s final moments, apparently showing the boy with a gun just before the shooting — but with his hands raised and empty at the moment the officer shot him in the chest.
Tendaji said McCullom was being held at the 25th District Station and was “probably terrified.”
“I don’t want any more family members experiencing this. He’s in a cell with the same people who showed no remorse in killing a 13-year-old,” she said. “If folks keep getting arrested, the idea is that we will be too afraid to keep fighting back, but at this point we have no choice. We’re fighting for our lives.”
