Pedro Rios Jr., a 14-year-old Latino boy, was fatally shot by a Chicago police officer on July 4, 2014. The incident occurred in the Portage Park neighborhood when officers observed Pedro crossing Cicero Avenue at Berenice and suspected he was holding something under his shirt. Officers Nicholas Redelsperger and Eric Bellomy attempted to stop Pedro, but he fled into a nearby alley. Redelsperger fired his weapon, striking Pedro in the back.
Despite being wounded, Pedro attempted to escape again but was struck by the police vehicle driven by Bellomy.
The officers claimed that Pedro had pointed a gun at them multiple times, justifying the use of deadly force. However, Pedro’s family disputed this account, arguing that while he may have been in possession of a firearm, he never brandished it or posed a direct threat to the officers. The family’s attorney stated that Pedro was shot in the back while running away, and as he fell to the ground, he was shot again near the hip, with the bullet ultimately piercing his lung.
Following the shooting, Pedro’s parents, Laura and Pedro Rios Sr., filed a federal civil lawsuit against the City of Chicago and the officers involved. The lawsuit alleged excessive force and wrongful death, claiming that Pedro was struck by the police vehicle before being shot while lying prone in the alley. The autopsy report revealed that Pedro had been shot twice in the back, contradicting some official accounts of the incident. The trajectory of the bullets suggested that he was face down when the shots were fired.
The case was set to go to trial when the City of Chicago reached a $1.2 million settlement with Pedro’s family. The settlement was one of several related to police shootings in the city. The lawsuit also sought the release of surveillance footage that captured the shooting, arguing that transparency was necessary to hold the officers accountable. Despite the settlement, the circumstances surrounding Pedro’s death remained controversial, with activists and family members continuing to demand justice for the young Latino boy.
