A fatal shooting in Chicago usually yields a response of, “So what? That’s just what they do there.” But this one is special in that it was both a random hate crime and it claimed the life of a Chicago police officer.
Man Accused Of Killing CPD Officer John Rivera Shot ‘The First Hispanic He Saw’ After Unrelated Fight At McDonald’s, Police Say
CHICAGO (CBS) — The gunman who allegedly shot and killed off-duty Chicago Police Officer John Rivera on Saturday once applied to become an officer himself, and allegedly shot “the first Hispanic man that he came in contact with” after a fight at the flagship McDonald’s restaurant in River North.
Menelik Jackson 24, and Jovan Battle 32, both have been charged with one count of first-degree murder and three counts of attempted murder. Jackson, the alleged gunman, also was charged with one count of resisting arrest for fighting with officers when he was taken into custody.
Police did not say exactly what Battle’s role was in the shooting, but said he was there when Jackson shot the victims.
“He’s complicit in what happened,” Police Supt. Eddie Johnson said.
Cook County Judge John Lyke ordered Jackson and Battle held without bail Monday afternoon, calling the shooting “one of the most senseless and evil acts I’ve heard of.”
Police said Jackson and another man got into a fight with a group of Hispanic men on a party bus at the flagship McDonald’s restaurant at 600 N. Clark St. about an hour before the shooting. Chief of Detectives Melissa Staples said Jackson was caught on video running from the McDonald’s, and coming back after the party bus had left. The other man involved in the fight was not in custody Monday morning, but police said they know who they are looking for.
So it sounds like maybe Jackson got his ass handed to him in hand to hand combat and proceeded to do what lily-livered thugs do after they get their asses kicked. They go get a gun.
Superintendent Johnson said Jackson and Battle then started searching the area for any Hispanic person they could find. He said they could face additional hate crime charges as a result.
“In an act of cowardice, Mr. Jackson went to get a gun to settle this petty dispute, which resulted in him murdering the first Hispanic man that he came in contact with,” Johnson said.
“Could face a hate crime?” How can this not be called a hate crime? He killed a random person just because of the color of his skin!
An hour later, around 3:20 a.m., Rivera, another off-duty officer, a male friend, and Rivera’s girlfriend all were leaving the Stout Barrel House & Pizza, less than a block away from the McDonald’s, and got into Rivera’s car. A short time later, Jackson and Battle walked up, and Jackson opened fire with a .40 caliber handgun, killing Rivera, and wounding a male friend in the rear passenger’s seat.
And in his last moments, Rivera committed this ultimate act of heroism:
After Rivera was shot in the chin, he turned to shield his girlfriend from gunfire, and that’s when he was shot in the back.
The other off-duty officer and Rivera’s girlfriend were not injured.
I don’t mean any disrespect for the victims of this crime but I have to ask a question. There was another off-duty officer who was not hit in the fusilade. Why didn’t he return fire? Maybe he just didn’t get the opportunity to fire back but I hope it wasn’t because he wasn’t carrying a weapon, as off-duty cops certainly have that right. Not carrying a gun when you are legally able to, especially in Chicago, is just negligent and I would much rather have seen this thug ventilated than incarcerated.
Sources said Jackson fired at least 20 shots.
And with typical ghetto thug accuracy, he only managed to score probably four hits. I mean he walked right up to their car and that’s the best this jerk off could do? It doesn’t say how many times the other victim was hit, but I’m guessing it wasn’t 17 times or he wouldn’t still be alive. Thank God these craven criminals don’t train.
Another friend, Julian Martinez, said he was planning on going out with the group, but his girlfriend felt sick.
“I probably would have been in that car with them, and God knows where I would be right now; whether dead, shot, still alive or traumatized,” Martinez said.
Rivera was pronounced dead at Northwestern Memorial Hospital just before 4 a.m. Another person in the car also was wounded in the car. The other two people in the car, including a second off-duty officer, were not injured. Martinez said the other person who was shot was up and talking on Sunday, but still at the hospital.
Sources said a short time before the shooting, the suspects had approached a homeless person, asking if that person had seen any Hispanic people in the area. The homeless person directed them to Rivera’s car.
Johnson said it’s clear Jackson knew Rivera and his friends were not involved in the altercation at McDonald’s.
“He knew that those other gentlemen were on a party bus, right? They [Rivera and his friends] weren’t in a party bus. They were in a vehicle just coming out from a pizza place. So it appears that he was just looking for a Hispanic person,” Johnson said. “He settled for the first Hispanic he saw.”
Like I said, that makes this a hate crime. What’s holding up the additional charge?
And here’s where this story goes from tragic to bizarre.
Police confirmed Jackson once filled out an application to become a police officer in 2017. When the department was in the process of conducting a background check on him, Jackson was charged with an armed home invasion. He pleaded guilty, and was sentenced to 30 months probation.
Let’s hear it for the Chicago judicial system! Probation for armed home invasion! Bravo! Leniency like this almost makes me want to revert to my old ways and move there. I never did anything like a home invasion, but if that’s all you get for in Chicago for such a serious crime . . . Jesus, have pity.
“The most egregious part about him is that he actually once thought he had what it took to wear a Chicago police star,” Johnson said. “Today, he stands accused of committing the ultimate disgrace to everything that this star stands for.”
Maybe he thought he had “what it took” or maybe he was just a thug trying to infiltrate your ranks and abuse the powers of that star. Raise your hand if you think it’s the latter.
Police said the gun used in the 2017 home invasion was seized and placed in evidence, and was not the same gun Jackson used to kill Rivera.
“One of the most disgusting things about this particular incident is that this guy actually had the nerve to think that he could become a Chicago police officer. It’s disgusting,” Johnson said. “The whole situation is tragic, but when you pile that on to it, it just makes it tougher for us to deal with.”
Police said Battle was arrested near the scene of the murder not long after the shooting.
Johnson said cameras caught Jackson getting into his own car after the shooting and driving away. Officers on patrol in the 2nd District on the South Side later scanned his license plate, and tracked the car to his apartment, where he was later arrested. Staples said the clothing Jackson wore at the time of the shooting and the murder weapon were found in his apartment.
Police said Jackson was arrested using Rivera’s cuffs.
That’s fitting and proper, but it doesn’t bring Rivera back. This hero who’s last actions were selfless and indeed self-sacrificing is lost to us forever. Rest in peace, officer.
