OFFICER SHOT IN PARKING LOT OF GRESHAM POLICE STATION
A Chicago police sergeant was out of the hospital Sunday evening after he was shot while standing in the parking lot of the Gresham District police station on the South Side, officials said.
At 2:33 p.m., the on-duty sergeant was in the south lot of the 6th District/Gresham station, 7808 S. Halsted St., when he heard gunshots and felt pain after suffering a graze wound to the chin, police said.
Just over 10 minutes later, the 45-year-old was rushed to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn in good condition, Chicago fire and police officials said.
Chicago Police Supt. David Brown visited the sergeant at the hospital Sunday afternoon, saying in a tweet that the wounded cop is “recovering in good spirits.” During a brief news conference at the hospital a short time later, Brown described the sergeant’s injury as a “superficial graze wound.” He was released Sunday evening, a police spokesperson said.
Earlier, police said no one was in custody in connection with the shooting. And Brown told reporters that the investigation led by Area Two detectives was still “very preliminary.”
“Right now, we are scouring our video, both at the station and POD camera video, as well as any [closed circuit television] private video that’s nearby for further evidence,” said Brown.
Brown said the sergeant is the first officer who has been struck by gunfire this year, though he added that 12 others have already been shot at. Brown said that outpaces the figures recorded last year, when 79 officers were shot at and 10 of them were hit.
“It just highlights the dangers of policing in the current environment we’re in,” Brown said during the news conference.
The sergeant’s identity hasn’t been released, but police said he’s a 26-year veteran of the department assigned to the Gresham District. Police said he has received 127 awards from the department, including 13 commendations, nine complimentary letters and 73 honorable mentions.