CPD releases dashcam video in 'concerning' 2011 arrest

Rob Elgas Image
Saturday, April 23, 2016
CPD releases dashcam video in 'concerning' 2011 arrest
New Superintendent Eddie Johnson says he finds the actions of two officers "concerning" and stripped them of their duties pending an investigation.

CHICAGO (WLS) -- The Chicago Police Department released video and several other documents related to an arrest following an armed robbery in 2011.

New Supt. Eddie Johnson said Friday he finds the actions of two officers involved "concerning" and has stripped them of their duties pending an investigation.

On May 25, 2011, several Chicago police officers were injured after a robbery attempt and brief chase. Dashcam video released Friday shows an officer pulling up to a gas station where a woman in a dark sedan was trying to get away from police. She pulls out and eventually stops on street.

Officers immediately approach her. Several of them have their guns drawn before she is grabbed on thrown to the ground. Within seconds, other squad cars arrive and the woman is handcuffed.

The mother of Tiffani Jacobs, the woman seen in the dashcam video, says she's grateful Supt. Johnson has reopened this case.

"She was very scared," Sandra Jones said when she saw the video for the first time. "I just want justice for my daughter. She is not a criminal, she just got herself in to a bad situation with a man."

Earlier that night, several people called 911 reporting an armed robbery at a McDonald's at 5656 W. Irving Park Road, which is what started the pursuit. Floyd May and Tiffani Jacobs were the suspects, and gunfire would soon erupt.

In video taken from a gas station surveillance camera near Kilborn and Madison, a man appears to cower and take cover as officers surround Jones' car. Although it's unclear in all the videos, Jones was shot by police. In the video, one of the windows of the sedan is blown out.

Her mother has a message for Supt. Johnson after his decision to strip two officers of their police powers.

"I'm so grateful, I believe that the way this was handled, they basically had to charge her to justify what they did to her," Jones said.

Chicago police say Supt. Johnson is now reviewing several internal affairs and IPRA cases, including this one. Tiffani Jacobs is expected to be released from prison next year.