Family of woman killed by Mundelein police see new footage: ‘They need to bring charges’
The family of Mary Alice Love, the Black woman shot and killed by Mundelein police in May, renewed their calls for criminal charges against the officer involved after viewing additional bodycam footage and listening to 911 call recordings on Monday afternoon.
According to family attorney Kevin O’Connor, the family was able to view the additional footage as part of an agreement with the village. During a news conference Monday, O’Connor said a potential civil case could be avoided “if the village is going to start cooperating,” describing the agreement for the family to view the video as a first step.
On May 11, Mundelein police officers responded to the home of Love’s mother, Jeffry, for calls of a woman in a mental health crisis. In a video released by the department that includes bodycam footage, officers are brought into the house by Jeffry Love. Mary Alice Love can be seen sitting outside through a glass sliding door.
One officer notes she has a knife, and when they try to move Jeffry Love, she falls back. Mary Alice Love is seen getting up and yelling. She slides open the door, and an officer fires four times, killing her.
O’Connor has argued Love’s death was a fatal mishandling of the situation, including a failure to follow crisis-intervention training and de-escalation techniques.
O’Connor previously said because of the reflection caused by the rear door’s glass, Love could only see her mother was being “tackled.” While she was holding a knife, she “never pointed it at anybody” and was shot before she entered the house, he said.
The shooting was ruled a homicide last month by a Lake County coroner’s inquest. Immediately afterward, family members met with Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart, which left them “very happy,” O’Connor said Monday.
If criminal charges were to move forward, they would be handled by the state’s attorney’s office, O’Connor said. There were no charges as of Monday.
Love’s father and sister both spoke during the news conference Monday, criticizing the police officers for escalating a mental health crisis.
“This should not happen to any other family,” said Love’s sister, Bertrand Love-Wakaba. “We need accountability for the wrong choices. Justice should not even be a question.”
Bishop Tavis Grant, a spiritual representative for the family, criticized the officers for not utilizing non-lethal methods, describing the shooting as a “miscarriage of justice.”
jstates@chicagotribune.com