Chicago police officer shot Paul O’Neal in back, autopsy shows
CHICAGO — Paul O’Neal, the black teenager who was killed by Chicago police, died of a single gunshot wound to the back, the Cook County medical examiner’s office confirmed in an autopsy report released Wednesday.
The teen did not have any illegal drugs in his system, CBS Chicago reports.
A Chicago police officer shot and killed O’Neal July 28, in an incident that was partly captured on video. The medical examiner’s office report stated that O’Neal was seen driving a 2002 Jaguar, a vehicle that had been reported stolen.
O’Neal, 18, reportedly refused to stop the vehicle and “rammed head on” into a marked squad car, injuring two officers. After the impact he got out and ran.
“During the foot pursuit shots were fired by other unidentified officers on the scene and possibly by O’Neal,” the medical examiner’s report says. However, investigators have determined that O’Neal was unarmed.
An officer, allegedly believing shots were fired by O’Neal, fired his “Glock 9mm handgun five times in an attempt to stop the threat,” the report states.
O’Neal was struck by a single bullet in the right side of his back, according to the report.