Family demands answers after Chicago police shoot, kill man mistaken for murder suspect

CHICAGO (Fox 32 News) - A family is demanding answers after Chicago police shot and killed their loved one in a case of mistaken identity.

On Wednesday, the family gathered to remember 21-year-old Curtis Stagger.

“I’m not accepting it right now. It’s heartbreaking, very heartbreaking,” said Michelle, the victim’s cousin.

Family members carried balloons, lit candles and wrote messages to their loved one. Dozens of people filled the sidewalk where Stagger was killed.

“Police brutality is very high here in Chicago. Very high everywhere, but it's mostly high here,” said family friend Keiona Currie.

It was a case of mistaken identity. Chicago police were looking for Stagger’s younger brother who is wanted for murder. But police found Stagger walking out of his uncle's home Tuesday afternoon in the 8100 block of South Chappel. Police say he had a handgun, so an officer shot at Stagger and, they say, he fired back.

Family members do not believe the department's narrative.

“That’s not him. If he knows you have a gun, he will move around on you...that's not him,” Michelle said.

The Civilian Office of Police Accountability is now investigating. They say the officers who were part of the Fugitive Apprehension Unit have not been issued body cameras, so there is no known video evidence of the shooting.

The officers involved are now on routine administrative leave.