Chicago police officer charged in 2020 viral shooting of man in subway station struggle

A Chicago police officer was charged Thursday for shooting a man inside subway station in 2020.  

The Cook County State's Attorney's Office announced Officer Melvina Bogard was charged with aggravated battery with a firearm and official misconduct in connection to the shooting of 34-year-old Ariel Roman at the Chicago Transit Authority Grand Red Line station on Feb. 28, 2020, Fox 32 Chicago reported. 

Bogard and another officer, Bernard Butler, attempted to stop Roman around 4 p.m. that day after he was spotted moving between train cars. A struggle ensued and both officers deployed their Tasers. Roman wrestled on the ground with Butler, but the man eventually managed to get up. 

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"Shoot him. Stop resisting," a male officer’s voice is heard saying in cellphone video recorded by a bystander, as the two officers wrestle with Roman at the bottom of stairs leading up to the station’s main course. "Stop resisting. Stop resisting. Give me your hands." 

Bogard uses her handgun to fire at Roman first at close range — then a second time as he reaches the top of the stairs, the Chicago Sun Times reported. 

Roman’s defense attorneys, Andrew M. Stroth and Greg Kulis, have filed a lawsuit against the city and both officers, disclosing that their client was shot in the hip and buttocks, and arguing "based on his injuries, his life will never be the same." Roman was hospitalized after the incident. His attorneys told the Chicago Tribune that he might need a third surgery to address ongoing complications from his injuries. 

He faced resisting arrest and narcotics charges after the incident, but those charges have been dropped.

"The State’s Attorney’s Office, U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI conducted a comprehensive investigation and today’s charges are consistent with the unjustified actions of these officers," Stroth and Kulis said in a statement issued Thursday after the charging decision was announced. "Ariel Roman was unarmed, did not present a threat and was shot as he ran away." 

Bogard turned herself in Thursday morning. Butler is not facing criminal charges in connection to the incident. The Chicago Police Department moved to fire both officers in April, but they both must still appear before a police board who will either finalize their terminations in October or decide to pause the process while criminal proceedings play out. 

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The Civilian Office of Police Accountability submitted the outcome of its investigation to Supt. David Brown in October 2020.