Man gets life for murder of police commander

CHICAGO >> A man convicted of first-degree murder in the 2018 shooting death of a Chicago police commander was sentenced Wednesday to life in prison.

Shomari Legghette, 47, received a mandatory life term for the fatal shooting of 53-year- old Cmdr. Paul Bauer because he was convicted of killing a police officer in the line of duty.

Bauer was walking to City Hall on Feb. 13, 2018, when he heard a radio call that a man was running from officers. He gave chase and caught Legghette, who, with Bauer, fell down a stairwell during a struggle before he shot Bauer several times.

During his trial, Legghette’s attorneys claimed their client didn’t know that Bauer was a police officer and that he shot him in self- defense.

At the sentencing hearing, Bauer’s wife, Erin Bauer, told Legghette about the pain he caused.

“To lose someone so violently adds another layer of pain that is indescribable,” she told Legghette.

Bauer’s teenage daughter, Grace, also gave a statement in which she described an alternate world where her father stayed home on the day he was shot.

Legghette, who did not testify during his trial, also gave a statement before sentencing, claiming he was being framed by police and prosecutors. He claimed an officer responding to the scene fired shots down the stairwell that killed Bauer. No evidence was presented at the trial asserting that’s what happened.

“Paul Bauer’s death actually was reckless and egregious when he chose to break protocol and use excessive force,” Legghette told the court.