Police surveillance camera wasn't working when CPD officers shot Dexter Reed – NBC Chicago

NBC 5 Investigates has learned that a Chicago Police Department surveillance camera located just feet from where police fatally shot 26-year-old Dexter Reed following a shootout last month was not present at the time of the deadly encounter worked.

The March 21 incident near Humboldt Park ended with Reed being killed and another officer suffering a gunshot wound to the wrist.

The Civilian Office of Police Accountability, which is investigating the shooting incident, said the POD camera in the immediate vicinity of the fatal shooting had a “defect” that enabled live broadcast but resulted in it being unable to record video of the incident.

NBC 5 Investigates has asked for more clarity on what happened to this particular POD camera and how many others may not be working. A spokesman for Mayor Brandon Johnson said he would get back to us.

The camera angle could have provided additional insight into the actions of Reed and the 11^Th District tactical unit officers.

“It is important to look at an incident not from a single perspective, but from multiple perspectives and put them together to better understand the whole. Therefore, it is deeply regrettable that this overhead perspective could have provided a more comprehensive view of what happened.” “The events, including what happened immediately before the officers got out of their car,” were not available, he said Craig Futterman, a law professor at the University of Chicago who studies policing strategies and their impact on communities. He also reviewed body camera videos released by COPA.

COPA, which is investigating the incident, released more than 30 videos on Tuesday – including body-worn camera videos, use-of-force reports, 911 calls and third-party videos that provided additional insights.

In the gunfire – including 96 shots in 41 seconds – an officer can be seen on his own body camera unloading and reloading multiple magazines into his weapon.

He later remarked to a colleague, “Did he start shooting at us?”

An officer replies: “Don’t say anything. Do you hear me? Be quiet.”

Tuesday's COPA statement said it appeared Reed fired first before officers returned fire, but that is difficult to tell from body cameras.

A week before the Civilian Office of Police Accountability released the videos of the shooting of Dexter Reed, the head of COPA wrote a letter calling on the Chicago police commissioner to strip the four officers of their police powers.

In the letter, COPA's chief administrator said she questioned the validity of the officers' stories – and said it was unclear how the officers knew Dexter Reed wasn't wearing a seatbelt, given where they were and the windows of his SUV were dark toned.

Andrea Kersten also wrote that she had “significant concerns” about officers’ ability to determine what deadly force was necessary and appropriate.

Of the 96 shots fired at Reed, an officer fired at least 50 times – even after Reed was on the ground.

NBC 5 Investigates obtained a copy of the letter late Tuesday afternoon.

COPA's investigation is ongoing. The office will work to determine what department policies, if any, may have been violated.

In a statement, Chicago police said they cannot make a decision on this shooting until all the facts are known and the investigation is complete.

A review of Chicago Police Department data by NBC 5 Investigates found that officers from the 11th^Th The police district where this shooting occurred uses more force than any other police district in all of Chicago.

The department's own data shows there have been at least 62 use-of-force incidents this year alone.

In fact, as of 2020, it's the 11th^Th The district has surpassed all other police districts in use of force.