CHICAGO (WLS) — Charges were dropped Wednesday against an Oak Lawn police officer after the violent arrest of a teen that was caught on video.
Officer Patrick O’Donnell’s case was set to go to a bench trial Thursday, but the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office dropped the aggravated battery and official misconduct charges.
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In a statement Wednesday, the state’s attorney’s office said, “After a thorough review, we concluded that the evidence is insufficient to meet our burden of proof beyond a reasonable doubtto move forward with the prosecution of this case. Prosecutors must evaluate the evidence at every stage of a criminal proceeding, and act accordingly in the pursuit of justice. Throughout the pendency of this case, the CCSAO has been in communication with the victim, his family, and attorney as we sought an appropriate resolution. Today we asked the court to dismiss the case, and the court granted our motion.”
The arrest in question happened in July of 2022. While conducting a traffic stop, Oak Lawn police said they smelled marijuana coming from the car they pulled over.
Body cameras captured 17-year-old Hadi Abuatelah running from officers. Eventually, officers stopped him in the street. Video released by Oak Lawn police shows officers hitting the teen.
Prosecutors accused O’Donnell of punching the teen in the face more than 10 times during the arrest, and said he also used his Taser, which led to the teen being hospitalized.
Police said Abuatelah had a bag with a gun in it, and wouldn’t let it go. Oak Lawn police said a gun was recovered after the incident.
After an investigation, the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office decided to indict O’Donnell, saying he, along with two other officers, held down the teenager and punched him repeatedly, causing massive injuries.
“If Officer O’Donnell acted how he was trained, it really speaks to the point of what’s wrong with policing in this state,” said Muhammad Sankari, with the Arab American Action Network. “If officers are trained that while two other adults are restraining a child, you repeatedly punch them in the face, you grab their hair and repeatedly punch them in the face and you break their nose, and you fracture their pelvis and you cause internal bleeding in their brain, what is wrong with policing in this state?”
Abuatelah pleaded guilty in juvenile court to unlawful use of a weapon in the incident.
O’Donnell was on administrative leave, pending the investigation.
Abuatelah’s parents have filed a civil rights lawsuit against the Oak Lawn officers involved.
The video in the player above is from an earlier report.
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