CHICAGO — It took the system three years to convict Emonte Morgan of killing Chicago Police Officer Ella French during a 2021 traffic stop. And it took the system even longer to convict his mother of resisting police and trespassing at a hospital in the days after the shooting. But, finally, at long last, her case is resolved, too.
Evalena Flores, 44, fiercely defended her son both after his arrest and in September when a judge sentenced him to life in prison for fatally shooting French and badly injuring her partner, Carlos Yanez, in August 2021. Morgan’s brother, Erick, also Flores’ son, was convicted of running from the shooting scene with the murder weapon.
“I just wanted to make an announcement to the public that I am not a mother that’s delusional. I am not in denial or confused,” Flores said after Emonte Morgan’s sentencing. “I know my son is 100% innocent. These people will go at great lengths to cover up all the mistakes they made that gruesome night.”
Three days after the shooting, Flores went to visit Emonte Morgan, who was under police guard at Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn. She live-streamed as she searched the hospital for the surgery trauma ward, a secured area that doesn’t even have a button on the public elevators. She eventually found it. Watch:
Two Chicago cops and a hospital security officer stopped Flores from entering Morgan’s room, but prosecutors say she kicked the security guard in the groin and pushed the other officers. She was charged with battery, resisting, and criminal trespassing, all misdemeanors. Flores has continued to fight the charges for years.
Last July, she demanded a jury trial, records show. During a hearing on September 24, almost two weeks after Emonte Morgan was sent to prison, Judge Diana Lopez noted that Flores was “now saying that she has glaucomeana [sic] and needs surgery.”
The judge moved that hearing to October 1, but Flores didn’t show up, according to court records. Lopez issued an arrest warrant. Flores’ attorney “has not heard from her and her phone was not in service,” Lopez noted upon signing the warrant. A few days later, another note from the judge stated a defense attorney had “zero” communication with Flores.
Last month, Flores resurfaced. And, on January 28, she pleaded guilty to all charges filed against her: misdemeanor battery, resisting a peace officer, and trespassing, court records show. Lopez granted her a 12-month conditional discharge and ordered her to pay a $514 fine, perform 50 hours of community service, and undergo an anger management evaluation.
If Flores completes all of the requirements, the case will be dismissed.
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