Three suspects were in custody Saturday after an exchange of gunfire with Chicago police in Brighton Park, following an attempted traffic stop just before 1:15 a.m. in the 4400-block of South Mozart Street.
Tactical officers tried to stop a vehicle in the neighborhood on Chicago’s Southwest Side, but the driver fled. Someone inside the vehicle then fired at a CPD vehicle multiple times as police chased it to the 2900-block of West 47th Street, where it crashed. After the crash, the suspects ran on foot, and one of them pulled out a gun and fired at officers. One officer returned fire. No one was shot.
The three suspects, two males and one female whose ages were not released, were taken to local hospitals with minor injuries from the crash before being placed in custody. One officer was also taken to a local hospital for observation. Police recovered two guns at the scene.
CPD’s Investigative Response Team was on scene Saturday morning as the Civilian Office of Police Accountability opened an investigation. The officer or officers involved will be placed on routine administrative duties for at least 30 days, standard in cases where police use force during a shooting investigation.
The case is now in the hands of investigators, and the central question is whether the gunfire that ended in Brighton Park began with the attempt to stop the car or the split-second decisions made after the crash.