May 13--A federal jury on Thursday found in favor of three Chicago police officers who shot a West Side store owner six times after responding to a call of an armed robbery in progress and mistaking the owner for one of the robbers.
The store owner, Bassil Abdelal, had picked up a large handgun dropped by one of the robbers and walked out of the store moments before the officers opened fire, according to testimony in the four-day trial over Abdelal's lawsuit.
The officers said Abdelal had pointed the gun at them and refused orders to drop the weapon. But Abdelal, who was badly wounded but survived, claimed he was shot as soon as he picked up the gun and had never aimed it at anyone.
The jury deliberated about four hours before finding that Officers Miguel Torres, Rolando Ruiz and Thomas Petrenko had not used excessive force in shooting Abdelal. The panel also found in their favor on counts of wrongful arrest, battery and assault.
Neither Abdelal nor the three officers showed any reaction as U.S. District Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer read the verdict.
In opening statements earlier this week, Abdelal's attorney, Brendan Gallagher, told jurors Abdelal had been working at his store, B Beauty Supply, in the 5100 block of West Lake Street on March 14, 2012, when three men burst into the store and demanded cash. After one of the robbers got a call on his cellphone, all three of them fled before getting any money. As one of the robbers ran out of the store, he tripped over Abdelal and dropped a large chrome handgun near the front door, Gallagher said.
Abdelal, fearing that the robbers would come back, stooped to pick up the gun when suddenly he was shot by police who had arrived, Gallagher said. Abdelal's thigh bone was shattered by one bullet and other bullets pierced his arms and back. He spent more than two months in the hospital and had to relearn how to walk, Gallagher said.
Gallagher said police "concocted a story" about Abdelal pointing the gun in order to justify the shooting.
But an attorney for the city, Marion Moore, said in her opening remarks that the officers had only seconds to react to the threat Abdelal posed. Moore, waving the long-barreled, "Dirty Harry"-style weapon in front of the jury, said the force the officers used was reasonable.
"The reason (Abdelal) was shot was because he made the decision to walk out of the store pointing this gun," Moore said. "That's what the officers saw, and that's what matters here."
In a statement after the verdict, the city's Law Department said: "We are pleased that after hearing the evidence in this case, the jury returned a verdict in favor of the police officers and the city."
jmeisner@tribpub.com
