Video from the Cook County Sheriff’s Office in Chicago is being sent to prosecutors, after inmates awaiting bond hearings applauded the suspect in the murder of police Cmdr. Paul Bauer on Thursday.
Officers were leading Shomari Legghette from the courtroom back to jail when they passed through an area known as “the bridge,” that connects the jail to the court complex. That’s where 25 inmates were being held in a cell as they awaited their own hearings. When Legghette passed by them, several could be seen applauding in appreciation for what he allegedly did.
“We are forwarding the video of this horrific and despicable behavior to the state’s attorney’s office with a request that this behavior be considered in the sentencing of the identified offenders,” Cara Smith, chief policy officer for the sheriff’s office told the Chicago Tribune. The inmates have yet to face trial.
As of Thursday afternoon, prosecutors had not issued a statement on the incident.
Legghette is accused of killing Cmdr. Bauer on Tuesday, after the officer chased him into a stairwell, where Legghette allegedly pulled out a handgun and shot him seven times. He is charged with First Degree Murder of a Peace Officer and other charges, and is being held without bond.
Smith said that the inmates who clapped for Legghette will be transferred for “institutional purposes,” and could end up in any of ten other counties in the state of Illinois that Cook County works with.
[Image via screengrab]
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