Video shows Oak Lawn police punching young person; police say he had gun

A video shared on social media this week showing Oak Lawn police officers repeatedly punching a young person is gaining attention online.

In the video, an officer can be seen repeatedly punching the youth in the head as he is held down by another officer, who punches him in the leg. The young person was hospitalized, police said.

“Why are they beating him like this? This a little ‘ol boy,” the person who took the video can be heard saying.

The altercation took place near 95th Street and McVicker Avenue, police said in a statement. The young person had been in a car pulled over by officers before running away from the vehicle, police said.

“The subject refused to listen to verbal commands which resulted in a physical confrontation with two officers,” the police statement said.

Police said the youth was unlawfully armed with a semi-automatic handgun during the incident. Both the young person and an officer were injured and transported to a local hospital, police said.

A man claiming to be the young person’s cousin said in a Facebook post that he had been handcuffed to a bed at Christ Hospital. The young person had been forced out of the car when it was pulled over, the man on Facebook said.

After the altercation, the young person was “screaming in pain” for five minutes and “almost unconscious,” the Facebook user said.

Oak Lawn police spokesperson Gerald Vetter told the Tribune the young person’s age was not yet confirmed. No firearms were discharged during the incident, he said.

Vetter also said he could not say whether the man being pursued brandished or otherwise threatened officers with the firearm that they said he was in possession of.

“We’re still just gathering all the reports,” Vetter said. Police expect to provide updated information “in a couple of hours,” he said. The police statement said an investigation is ongoing and charges are pending.

This is a developing story. Check back for more updates.

jsheridan@chicagotribune.com

Twitter: @jakesheridan_