Family of Chicago teen run over by police SUV awaits trial decision
CHICAGO - A Chicago family says they've been waiting for justice for three years after a teenage girl was run over by an unattended Chicago police car.
The incident happened in the Longwood Manor neighborhood during the unrest following the killing of George Floyd, and now the family is one step closer to justice.
On Thursday, they will find out if their case against the city will go to trial.
Astarte Washington and her brother were walking from their grandmother’s home in the 9700 block of South Yale Avenue on the afternoon of May 31, 2020, when they ran into a large group of protesters and looters, according to a lawsuit filed by the family.
Police ordered the group to stop and get to the ground near 111th Street and South Michigan Avenue. While others dispersed, Astarte followed the order, the suit states.
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Astarte was on the ground when an officer jumped out of a police SUV nearby and the car began rolling backward down the block, running over Astarte with both the rear and front tires, "causing traumatic and severe permanent injuries," the suit states.
Washington suffered multiple broken bones and emotional scars.
After the family filed a $5 million lawsuit against the City of Chicago, their attorney offered to settle, but never heard back.
"My daughter turned around, and she got down to the ground. She left her hands up, got on her knees, got down, and not even five seconds, the truck ran over her," said Tawana Washington, Astarte's mother.
"The only girl that laid down and followed those officer's commands. And after doing so, she watched a Chicago police vehicle roll over her body with the front tires and the back tires, all of which is captured on the dashcam. What we see after the rollover is multiple officers, five that have been identified, attending to Astarte," said Robert Fakhouri, the family's attorney.
The city has not confirmed if the officers had their body cameras turned on or not.