CHICAGO (AP) — A man who was allegedly with a 13-year-old shortly before the child was shot to death by a Chicago police officer pleaded not guilty Wednesday to a variety of charges.
Defense attorney Michael Oppenheimer, during a hearing before Cook County Circuit Judge Charles Burns, entered the not-guilty plea on Ruben Roman’s behalf.
Roman, 21, was indicted in May on three counts of unlawful use of a weapon and one count of recklessly discharging a firearm. Not included is a child endangerment charge which were filed against Roman when he was arrested.
The child endangerment charge was dropped after the Cook County state’s attorney’s office determined erroneous information was entered into the court record about the shooting by a prosecutor.
Surveillance video released by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability show Roman shooting at a passing vehicle the morning of March 29, while Adam Toledo stood near to him.
Prosecutors say Roman fled the area with Toledo shortly afterward, with officers pursuing them into an alley. Roman was arrested first. Toledo kept running, video of the shooting shows.
Roman is free on an ankle monitor pending trial after a charitable bond fund posted the $40,000 bail, saying they believe the city was using him as a “scapegoat” for Toledo’s killing.
Largely peaceful demonstrations were held for days after the video of Toledo’s shooting was released by the agency that investigates Chicago police shootings Thursday. Attendees have criticized the Chicago Police Department for a long history of misconduct, particularly in Black and Latino neighborhoods, and called for justice for Adam, who was Latino. Stillman is white.
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