An argument at a popular Chicago hot dog eatery resulted in a man being fatally shot in his back by a minor. However, the 14-year-old who pulled the trigger will not be charged for his alleged murder.
The teen, who police initially alleged was told by his mother to shoot and kill Jeremy Brown, 32, after she was assaulted by Brown, was facing charges for his death.
Brown was shot inside Maxwell Street Express in Chicago’s West Pullman neighborhood on Sunday, June 18 around 11 p.m. But after a week of investigation, the shooter has been cleared, according to reports.
The Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office stated “emerging evidence” influenced their decision not to pursue a charge against the boy.
“In light of emerging evidence, today the Cook County state’s attorney’s office has moved to dismiss the charges against Carlishia Hood and her 14-year-old son,” read a statement from the office. “Based upon the facts, evidence, and the law we are unable to meet our burden of proof in the prosecution of these cases.”
The teen’s 35-year-old mother, whose first name is given as Carlishia in multiple reports about the case, also faced murder charges, according to court records. Her charges were also dropped.
“Tears of joy. When your family is GOD DRIVEN. Nothing the impossible! I just got a call saying all charges was dropped my cousins will be home,” wrote Yatta Hood, who claims she is related to Hood and her son. “That’s all God right there.“
Yatta Hood also thanked the public on behalf of her family, writing, “Without social media and y’all helping us make our voice louder this wouldn’t be. Thank you all for helping share the truth with my post and that video.”
A 20-second video showing Brown beating on Hood while they patronized the same restaurant went viral on social media. Reports show the boy was sitting in the parking lot when his mother and the stranger began arguing while in line to order meals.
Brown punched the woman at least three times in the head before the boy opened fire. The teen is seen in surveillance footage in the doorway of the restaurant with his hands in his hoodie pocket before springing into action.
The son, whose name is being withheld because he is a minor, pulled out a firearm and shot the man in the back. Reportedly, he then followed Brown as he ran from the restaurant and fired other shots before Brown succumbed to his injuries. Reports show Brown suffered two to three gunshot wounds to the back.
The teen faced a minimum sentence of 20 years had the murder charge stuck, according to Restore Justice.
Relatives claim a witness told police the teen fired the deadly shot under the instruction of his mother, killing him outside of the eatery, and told her son to shoot another person for laughing in the restaurant.
However, family members say that the account portraying the mother and son as aggressors was distorted.
On her Facebook page, Darnitrea Wiley, who identifies herself as Hood’s sister posted a picture of a white woman she alleges fed the misinformation to authorities.
She wrote, “This is the lady that decided to push this whole narrative about instructed, ordered, or text, this is the lady that painted my sister as an aggressive black woman who didn’t care about her son, this is the lady who made my nephew look like a thug.”
Wiley asserts that her nephew saw from the car that his mother was being assaulted and came in to help and the shooting was to stop the assault.
“The media wanted her to be a bad mother, the media wanted him to be a thug,” she wrote.
Days after the incident, on Wednesday, June 21, the mother and son turned themselves in to the police. Cook County Circuit Court Judge Barbara Dawkins ordered Hood held on a $3 million bond, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
On Monday, June 26, all charges were dropped because authorities were unable to meet the burden of proof to prosecute either case.
Before the incident, Hood and her son had no reported criminal background. The woman also had a valid Firearm Owners Identification card and a permit to carry a concealed weapon.
The mother was facing a felony count of murder and another count of contributing to the delinquency of a minor. The teen was facing a felony count of murder.
