Dexter

The sad story of Dexter Reed, the man who was shot by police and killed in traffic stop in Chicago on March 21st of this year. Dexter was a talented basketball player with ambitions of being a sports broadcaster. In Feb of 2021 he received $20,000 from the Paycheck Protection Program. Later that year he was shot in a confrontation at his home which resulted in long term problems. Here is his statement. “I’m physically disabled and mentally unstable with PTSD, short-term memory loss, slurred speech, drop foot in one of my legs, blindness in one eye, shoulder/arm hard to move, weakness and/or sensitivity,” Reed, who was 26 when he was killed last month, wrote in an August 2023 court filing. “With all these medical conditions it has been hard for me to work and/or do certain things.” According to Police records, Reed was arrested on July 13, 2023, two blocks from the United Center and charged with felony aggravated unlawful use of a weapon. Reed was also arrested on April 20, 2023 and charged with theft from the Zara clothing store. During the incident on March 21 when he was fatally shot, Reed was stopped for a traffic violation and when asked to get out of the car he fired 11 shots through the passenger side window injuring one officer. Next he exited the car without his gun and officers opened fire and killed him. Reed's car has tinted windows so the police could not see his actions in the car. The question has come up as to how the police could see he was not wearing his seat belt which was the reason given for the stop. Why did four officers happen to be there for this traffic stop. The family is now suing the city for wrongful death. While the circumstances surrounding this death are questionable what is not is the fact that a man with mental problems was driving around with an illegal gun. This was an incident looking for a place to happen and it did.