Video shows Chicago police firing at Dexter Reed 96 times in 41 seconds after he shot officer during traffic stop, oversight agency says

A man shot and killed by Chicago police during a traffic stop last month appears to have “fired first,” striking an officer before four others fired nearly 100 rounds, some after the man had fallen to the ground, oversight officials said Tuesday.

The Civilian Office of Police Accountability did not say how many times Dexter Reed allegedly fired at the police but said the officers “returned fire approximately 96 times over a period of 41 seconds, including after Mr. Reed exited his vehicle and fell to the ground.”

“Review of video footage and initial reports appears to confirm that Mr. Reed fired first, striking the officer and four officers returned fire,” COPA added.

Mayor Brandon Johnson called the footage “deeply disturbing,” but walked a fine line between mourning Reed and offering prayers for the wounded cop. Johnson told reporters at City Hall that he met with the officer on the night of the shooting and has since visited with Reed’s family.

“I know this footage is extremely painful and traumatic for many of our city’s residents,” Johnson said. “It would be especially difficult for those of us living in communities where the events depicted occur all too often. As mayor and as a father raising a family, including two Black boys on the West Side of Chicago, I’m personally devastated to see yet another young Black man lose his life during an interaction with the police.”

Reed was stopped in the 3800 block of West Ferdinand in Humboldt Park on March 21 “for purportedly not wearing a seatbelt,” according to COPA.

Body-worn camera footage shows officers hopping out of an unmarked vehicle and approaching Reed’s GMC Terrain, parked over a crosswalk behind the police vehicle. Reed briefly rolls his window down as directed, then begins rolling it back up.

“Open the door now,” an officer shouts while pulling on the handle.

Video from a home surveillance camera appears to show plumes of smoke coming from inside the SUV as gunshots are heard. An officer who was standing by the passenger side window was struck in the hand and is seen falling backward.

As officers fire their guns, some duck for cover and begin calling for help over the police radio.

Amid the gunfire, Reed is seen walking around the back of his SUV before he’s apparently struck repeatedly and falls to the ground. Reed, who was unarmed by this time, is seen lying in the street as officers continue to fire several final shots.

“Don’t f—ing move,” one officer says as she approaches him. “F—, f—, f—, f—, f—, f—, f—. Don’t move!”

As another officer walks alongside the bullet-riddled GMC, he reports that Reed’s gun was left on a seat.

Officers are seen tending to the wounded officer and another cop who says he’s “freaking out.” An officer recording the video has a clear message for them: “Don’t say anything, you hear me? Be quiet.”

First aid at the scene

The body camera footage shows Reed lying unresponsive as officers search for a gun and place handcuffs on him. With a flood of police cars responding to the scene, officers are shown performing chest compressions on Reed as he lays in a pool of blood.

Reports released by COPA indicate four of the five officers at the scene fired at Reed. Only one of them did not reload their gun.

The wounded officer, who didn’t fire his weapon, is shown on video walking up to the passenger side of Reed’s SUV and can be heard ordering Reed to roll down his window as officers on the other side of the SUV shout similar commands.

The officer appears to grab hold of the passenger door handle when he cries out and pulls away from the door, turning and stumbling on the grass of the parkway. Holding his left arm limp at his side and clutching his radio in his right, the officer stumbles across a side yard, gasping.

Blood drips from his arm as he jogs across the street, taking up a vantage point about 50 feet behind Reed’s vehicle, as shots ring out over and over, according to the video.

In Tuesday’s statement, COPA said its investigators have “provided briefings to the Cook County state’s attorney’s office, the FBI, the Department of Justice and sent a formal request to Supt. Larry Snelling recommending the Chicago Police Department relieve four officers of their police powers during the pendency of this investigation.”

Anthony Vazquez | Sun-Times

Johnson said the officers had been placed on leave for 30 days but appeared to caution against making judgments before all the facts are gathered.

“Shooting a police officer can never be condoned, never excused,” he added. “I will never stand for that, and neither will the city of Chicago. We also have to be very clear that we hold our police to the highest of standards.”

Johnson was joined by COPA Chief Administrator Andrea Kersten and Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx, who said her office was “in the very beginning stages” of reviewing the shooting for potential criminal charges.

“We understand the great public interest in transparency and accountability, especially when deadly force is used and a life is taken,” Foxx said. “For the family of Dexter Reed, the wounded officer and the officers involved in this incident, we must ensure that the process is transparent, fair and thorough.”

Supt. Snelling was notably absent from the news conference. On Monday night, he spoke at a community meeting at police headquarters and said the videos of the shooting had been mischaracterized.

“I know that you can make your own decisions when you look at that video,” Snelling said, “but it’s not the things that you’ve been told.”

Before the video was released, West Side faith leaders on Tuesday called for an independent investigation beyond the one being conducted by the police oversight agency. The Rev. Ira Acree, one of several faith leaders who signed the letter, suggested the investigation be conducted by the attorney general or federal government.

“People still have these ugly images of the 16 shots and a coverup that was associated with Laquan McDonald,” Acree said of the teenager killed by Jason Van Dyke, the former Chicago cop who was convicted of second-degree murder in the 2014 shooting that spurred a federal court order mandating sweeping departmental changes.

“I believe to build trust with police, you have to have an independent investigation that’s a little removed from these people who are friends who know each other,” Acree added.

At least one member of the City Council believes the shooting was justified.

Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd), chairman of the City Council’s Public Safety Committee, said he’s been told the 26-year-old Reed fired 11 shots through his car window in what Hopkins called “an attempt to kill police officers.” An empty gun was recovered at the scene, Hopkins said.

“If we’re going to allow criminals to use deadly force without fear of deadly force being returned, what will that do to society?” Hopkins said. “He fired 11 rounds at these police officers before he was eventually killed. Period. What more do you need to talk about?”

A standout basketball player who recently faced arrests

Reed’s family members viewed footage of the shooting Monday afternoon with their attorney Andrew Stroth, whose civil rights firm has sued the city over other police shootings. Stroth declined to comment ahead of a news conference the family is planning to hold Tuesday afternoon outside COPA’s West Town offices.

Days after the shooting, the family sent a letter to Mayor Brandon Johnson and Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling saying they “still don’t know why Dexter was shot by these plainclothed police officers. What we do know, leaves us very troubled.”