Officer was suspended 90 days for unregistered gun used in fatal shooting in Mount Greenwood

Former Police Supt. Eddie Johnson originally wanted to give Officer Joseph Treacy a three-day suspension

SHARE Officer was suspended 90 days for unregistered gun used in fatal shooting in Mount Greenwood
An off-duty firefighter gives CPR to Joshua Beal after off-duty Chicago police officer Joseph Treacy (in red T-shirt) and an off-duty sergeant (in a black Sox sweatshirt over a white uniform shirt) — fired at Beal on 111th near Kedzie on Nov. 5, 2016.

An off-duty firefighter gives CPR to Joshua Beal after off-duty Chicago police officer Joseph Treacy (in red T-shirt) and an off-duty sergeant (in a black Sox sweatshirt over a white uniform shirt) — fired at Beal on 111th near Kedzie on Nov. 5, 2016. | Civilian Office of Police Accountability video

Civilian Office of Police Accountability

The Chicago Police Department suspended an officer for three months for failing to register a handgun he used to open fire at a man killed in a racially charged disturbance in 2016 on the Southwest Side.

The gun was one of eight firearms Officer Joseph Treacy owned but didn’t register with the department, officials say.

The Chicago Sun-Times has reported that authorities were looking at Treacy’s gun ownership, but the outcome of that scrutiny has previously been unknown.

Former Chicago Police Supt. Eddie Johnson originally disagreed with the Civilian Office of Police Accountability’s recommendation to suspend Treacy for 90 days for failing to register his gun.

Johnson thought a three-day suspension was in line with similar cases, a police spokesman said. But Johnson eventually agreed last year to suspend Treacy for three months. Treacy appealed the suspension.

Officials could not immediately provide the date of the suspension.

The Civilian Office of Police Accountability had referred the issue of Treacy’s other seven unregistered guns to the police department’s Bureau of Internal Affairs for investigation, said Ephraim Eaddy, a spokesman for COPA.

In a separate investigation, COPA found Treacy and a sergeant — who were both off-duty — were justified when they used deadly force against Joshua Beal in 2016. The Indiana man pointed a gun at them during a confrontation in the Southwest Side Mount Greenwood neighborhood, police said.

Beal’s shooting appears to have been linked to a traffic altercation between Treacy, who’s white, and African-Americans, including Beal, who were driving in a funeral procession. They jumped out of their cars on 111th Street near Kedzie, a crowd gathered and racial slurs were used, according to a report by COPA.

A cellphone video shows Beal standing behind a car with a gun in his hand. The off-duty officers shot at Beal after he extended his arm to fire at them, police said.

Beal’s family has filed a lawsuit against the city over his death.

The Latest
The man was found unresponsive in an alley in the 10700 block of South Lowe Avenue, police said.
The man suffered head trauma and was pronounced dead at University of Chicago Medical Center, police said.
Another federal judge in Chicago who also has dismissed gun cases based on the same Supreme Court ruling says the high court’s decision in what’s known as the Bruen case will “inevitably lead to more gun violence, more dead citizens and more devastated communities.”
Women make up just 10% of those in careers such as green infrastructure and clean and renewable energy, a leader from Openlands writes. Apprenticeships and other training opportunities are some of the ways to get more women into this growing job sector.
Chatterbox doesn’t seem aware that it’s courteous to ask questions, seek others’ opinions.