Shortly before 6 p.m. Saturday, a caravan carrying Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Police Supt. David Brown pulled up to the corner of Ainslie Street and Drake Avenue in Albany Park. The VIPs stepped out of their SUVs and mingled in the street while a photographer took pictures. Then, they returned to their vehicles and moved along.
Just 21 minutes later at the same intersection, a man pulled a gun with an extended magazine from his hoodie and opened fire on a passing car. No injuries were reported in the shooting, but that will likely do little to reduce the embarrassment for Lightfoot and Brown who are struggling to convince Chicagoans that they have a handle on the city’s violence.
The mayoral photo session and the shooting were both clearly captured on a home surveillance camera — and that footage appeared Sunday evening on the YouTube account of “Dr. Sandler.” We’re sharing the videos below.
Lightfoot and Brown were in the area to attend an outdoor police roll call. Shortly after the event ended, they relocated to Ainslie and Drake for a sidebar — and a photo session.
The Chicago Police Department tweeted this photo of Lightfoot and Brown standing in the intersection minutes before the shooting unfolded.
A pair of parked scooters, seen above Lightfoot’s head in the CPD image, are also visible at the top of the surveillance footage. From there, it’s easy to see that the photo session and the video footage came from the same place at the same time. A police SUV is parked on the corner behind Brown. One of Lightfoot’s security officers stands with his hands on his lapels in the image. He’s also seen in the video. Here’s footage of the VIPS at the corner:
At 6:01 p.m., the caravan pulled away and life returned to normal for 21 minutes.
That’s when a man wearing a black hoodie crosses the intersection where Lightfoot and Brown stood minutes earlier. As he reaches the opposite corner, a car turns through the intersection. The man pulls a gun from his sweatshirt, turns, and opens fire as he moves down the sidewalk. Watch:
In the background, a man who’s walking his dog runs for cover while the shots continue to ring out. Then, the gunman turns around, skips to the corner, and disappears out of camera range.
Scanner audio confirms police received a flood of shots fired calls at the corner of Ainslie and Drake moments after the time seen on the video’s clock. No arrests were made.
Brown and other police leaders are scheduled to participate in a marathon budget session before the City Council on Monday. It will be interesting to hear if anyone asks about what happened at Ainslie and Drake on Saturday evening — and how police leaders will try to explain it away.
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