The family of a Park Ridge teen has filed a lawsuit against a Chicago police officer who knelt on the boy’s back to restrain him after falsely accusing the boy of stealing his son’s bike.
The filing comes less than two weeks after a judge found Sgt. Micheal Vitellaro not guilty of battery and official misconduct charges. It accuses Vitellaro of false imprisonment, negligence, assault, battery and intentional infliction of emotional distress.
“This conduct cannot be tolerated, and both Vitellaro and the city of Chicago will be held accountable for their actions,” said attorney Javier Rodriguez Jr. “We look forward to questioning Sergeant Vitellaro on the stand... and allowing a jury to decide for themselves what justice and accountability look like.”
Video of the confrontation between the off-duty officer and the teen, 14 at the time, went viral last summer when Vitellaro was seen holding the boy to the ground, his knee on the boy’s back.
In acquitting Vitellare of criminal charges earlier this month, Judge Paul Pavlus said he saw no evidence that the officer had targeted the teenager for any reason other than he believed his son’s bike was stolen.
Pavlus said that, after viewing multiple videos of the incident and listening to witness testimony, the video widely circulated on social media didn’t “come close to describing what really happened.”
The teen’s parents, Angel and Nicole Nieves, said they felt the judge had spent more time attacking their son and questioning his actions than those of the officer.
“My son gets attacked over a piece of property? My son gets attacked over a piece of property and somehow he’s the one who’s wrong here?” Nicole Nieves said.
Angel Nieves added, “The misuse of force, irrational behavior, and unprovoked actions of this Chicago police sergeant cannot go unchecked, so we will continue to fight for our son, and, in doing so, hope to advocate for others who feel voiceless in their pursuit of justice.”
Vitellaro was relieved of his police powers after the incident. a spokeswoman for the Civilian Office of Police Accountability, which investigated the incident, said its findings were sent to the Chicago police superintendent in March for consideration.
Contributing: Matthew Hendrickson
