Raw videos in fatal Chicago police shooting of Harith Augustus released by COPA
WARNING: Raw videos contain graphic content
CHICAGO (WLS) -- The Civilian Office of Police Accountability released raw video footage Thursday of the fatal police shooting of Harith Augustus in the city's South Shore neighborhood.
Augustus, 37, was approached on July 14 in the 2000-block of 71st Street by police. The Chicago Police Department released a portion of one officer's body camera video of the incident, which ended with an officer shooting and killing Augustus.
The COPA release included more complete video of that bodycam, including sound from immediately following the shooting.
WATCH: Chicago police bodycam video #1
Police said officers saw Augustus carrying a gun, which prompted them to follow and try to speak with him. In the bodycam video you can see a female officer attempting to restrain him, but Augustus wiggles away and appears to go for his gun as he twists towards police, at which point her partner, a male officer, fires.
The female officer can be heard comforting her partner after the shooting.
"Why did he have to pull a gun out on us?" the male officer says.
"Breathe in through your nose, out through your mouth," she tells him. "I feel like I wasn't there for you. I was trying to grab him."
"I had to. He was gonna shoot us," he says.
"Look at me. You're okay, you're okay," she replies.
"He pulled a gun on us," he says.
"I know he did, I know he did. Look at me, you're okay," she says.
WATCH: Police bodycam video #2
A security camera at a nearby business shows the barber walking by uniformed officers, who apparently notice the gun in a holster at his waist and start following. Reports filed after the incident show officers said they performed an "investigatory stop" for "suspicion of a man with a gun."
WATCH: Third-party surveillance video #5
The report goes on to say that Augustus did not follow verbal directions, pulled away and fled. Officers said in the report they believed he posted an "imminent threat of battery with a weapon" and "used force likely to cause great bodily harm." The police paperwork indicates the officer fired five shots.
The footage shows how quickly the situation unfolded in real time.
WATCH: Chicago police bodycam video #3
According to CPD, Augustus had a Firearm Identification Card but not a Concealed Carry License.
Bodycams were activated after the shooting and the 30 seconds of prior video are saved only as silent video, so there is no audio accounting of what transpired before the shooting; what officers said to him or what he said to officers.
The silent video is a standard feature of all police bodycams.
WATCH: POD camera video
There was a court hearing Thursday to compel COPA to release all video connected to the incident, but COPA said it planned to release the video today regardless of the timing of the hearing. COPA said it was waiting to show the video to Augustus' relatives before its release.
Augustus' stepfather was the only member of his family present, along with the attorney, at that viewing. The family's attorney spoke afterward.
"It showed the police officers were there, they saw a young man coming and they start chasing for him for no obvious reason that we're aware of, and we'll keep looking into that as the lawyers in the case," said Standish Willis, attorney.
Willis said they only saw surveillance video from near the scene. It was not immediately clear why they were not shown body cam video.
WATCH: Third-party surveillance video #10
A total of 18 videos were released Thursday. CLICK HERE to view all videos, audio recordings and documents released by COPA on their website.
In the days following the shooting, Chicago police released one piece of body cam footage that showed the deadly encounter.
But the video had no audio and raised a number of questions.
"I think as long as Rahm Emanuel is the mayor of this city we'll never have true transparency," said community organizer Will Calloway.
"And if the city can selectively release edited video when it wants to within two days, it ought to be doing that for all videos in all instances," said Matt Topic, Loevy & Loevy.
WATCH: SLOW-MOTION VIDEO OF POLICE SHOOTING FROM OFFICER'S BODYCAM
Days of protests followed the shooting. There were clashes between police and protesters and calls for COPA to release all available video.
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