Chicago police officer faces possible firing for shooting unarmed 13-year-old boy during 2022 foot chase

A Chicago police officer who shot and paralyzed an unarmed 13-year-old boy in 2022 faces possible dismissal, following a probe by the city agency that investigates police misconduct.

The Civilian Office of Police Accountability determined the boy "appeared to raise both hands" during a foot chase in May 2022 and "was unarmed and posed no imminent threat" when Officer Noah Ball shot him.

"It was not objectively reasonable for Officer Ball to believe [the boy] was armed. No other officer claimed to see a gun in possession even though they were close to Officer Ball," a final summary report released by COPA on Friday states.

COPA recommended Ball be fired over the shooting last year, and Chicago Police Supt. Larry Snelling agreed in November, sending the matter to the Chicago Police Board. Ball will have the option of having his disciplinary case decided by an independent arbitrator rather than the Chicago Police Board.

Snelling also will seek to have Ball placed on the city's "do not hire" list if he is fired.

Ball shot the boy on May 18, 2022, after he jumped out of a car wanted in connection with a carjacking and kidnapping  the day before in Oak Park.

With the help of license plate readers and a Chicago police helicopter, officers tracked the car to the intersection of Kilpatrick Avenue and Rice Street, where the boy got out and started running.

Officers chased the boy to the parking lot of a gas station at Cicero and Chicago avenues, where he turned to face them and put his hands up, according to COPA's investigation.

"Officer Ball yelled twice, 'Drop the gun!' and Officer Ball discharged his firearm three times in rapid succession," COPA's report states.

After the boy fell to the ground, officers saw he was holding a phone, not a gun.

COPA faulted Ball for not using de-escalation techniques or considering other alternatives to using deadly force to catch the boy, and noted no other officers involved in the chase claimed to see the boy holding a gun.

Ball and the other officers also failed to activate their body-worn cameras until after the shooting, in violation of Chicago Police Department policy. The shooting was recorded by surveillance cameras at the gas station, but COPA did not publicly release any of the video footage, because state law prohibits the release of such videos involving children.

The other officers involved in the chase have since resigned from the department, so will not face any disciplinary action for failing to turn on their body-worn cameras.

The boy's mother, Cierra Corbitt, filed a federal lawsuit against Ball and the city in October 2022, accusing the officer of "recklessly, callously, and wantonly" shooting her son without justification, leaving him paralyzed from the waist down.

That lawsuit was still pending as of Tuesday, and no trial date has been set.