Firefighter strikes man with metal bar during Grand Crossing dispute
Video shows an escalation after a 911 call for a mental health crisis on the South Side.
By Takeshi Davidson ·
A Chicago firefighter used a metal bar to strike a man during a confrontation on the South Side this past Sunday. The incident occurred outside a Grand Crossing Baptist church as mass was ending.
Witness Cherokee Mahomes was leaving the church with her family when the crowd noticed a shirtless man. The group called 911 for assistance. Mahomes recorded the scene, capturing a lone police officer holding a stun gun and the approaching man.
The man asked the onlookers if they had contacted police or fire crews. Mahomes stated that the man's intentions were unclear and the situation felt unsafe. The officer moved back after telling the man to back up. The man then charged at the firefighter.
The officer attempted to fire the stun gun but missed. The firefighter then swung a metal bar, knocking the man to the ground. Video footage later shows the man awake and alert. Additional officers arrived to cuff him and transport him to a medical facility.
Mahomes described the firefighter as a hero who protected her family. She noted that he dropped the bar after the strike and walked over to check on the man's condition. She said, He did what he had to do. He swung the weapon and he protected himself.
A source told CBS News Chicago the original call was for a mental health crisis. Chicago police are currently investigating the incident. The man struck is expected to make a full recovery.
David Harris, a law and criminal professor at the University of Pittsburgh, commented on the response. He said, There has to be enough coordination and communication so that when a mental health crisis is called in the care team can be one of the first, if not the first priority. Mahomes did not know if the CARE team, the city's mental health crisis unit, was requested during the call.
