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Last August, unarmed teenager Charles Macklin was shot dead by an off-duty fire lieutenant with a concealed carry permit after the teen attempted to steal the man’s Jeep and take it on a joyride. The lieutenant has yet to be charged with any crime despite an excessive use of force that stole a 17 year-old’s life and traumatized witnesses at the scene.
The 45 year-old fire lieutenant, who has not been named, had left the Jeep running outside his home in Chicago’s North Austin neighborhood. When he exited his house, he saw Macklin in the driver’s seat attemping to pull away from the curb. The lieutenant claimed he fired his pistol “to stop the offender from running him over with his vehicle,” but the physical evidence tells a far different story.
No bullets were fired through the windshield of the Jeep, in fact no bullets struck the vehicle at all. Furthermore, Macklin was not killed inside the Jeep. He died bleeding on the street, as confirmed by witnesses. Mackin’s mother says her son had already exited the vehicle. “He killed my son on the street in the middle of the street,” she said. “At close range. He put the gun into his chest and pulled the trigger.”
Please contact Chicago Police Chief Eddie Johnson and Cook County State’s Attorney Kimberly Foxx through one of the channels below and give them the following message (personalized to your liking):
I am contacting you today to demand that you arrest the 45 year-old fire lieutenant who killed 17 years-old Charles Macklin in August 2017 and charge him with murder. Macklin was unarmed when he attempted to take the lieutenant’s Jeep on a joyride and was no immediate threat to anyone. The lieutenant’s claim that he was about to be run over is totally contradicted by the facts of the case. The round he fired did not hit the windshield or any other part of the vehicle. Macklin died not in the driver’s seat but rather ON THE PAVEMENT. He was unarmed and shot at close range in the chest. He then fell to the ground and bled to death as witnesses looked on. These facts strongly suggest that Macklin had already exited the vehicle when he was executed. Do your job and bring justice in this case. It doesn’t matter what you personally think when young, unarmed men of color are murdered by concealed carry permit holders. There is enough discrepency here between the lieutenant’s story and the facts at hand that a grand jury should make the final determination as to whether a crime was committed. Bring charges immediately.
Chicago Police Chief Eddie Johnson
Phone: (312) 746-6000
Email: CLEARPATH@chicagopolice.org
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ChicagoPoliceDepartment/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Chicago_Police
Cook County State’s Attorney Kimberly Foxx
Phone: (312) 603-1880
Email: STATESATTORNEY@COOKCOUNTYIL.GOV
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/CookCountySAO
Twitter: https://twitter.com/CookCountySAO
Once you have contacted Chief Johnson and State’s Attorney Foxx, fill out the three fields below and click the orange banner to report taking action!