Off duty Officer kills man on Near West Side

An off-duty Chicago police officer fatally shot a man on the Near West Side this morning .
The incident happened at 6:45 a.m. at a Chicago Housing Authority building in the 1800 block of West Monroe Street.
The male officer was off-duty and working a part time job when he saw an armed female civilian security guard in a physical altercation with a male offender attempting to gain access to the property.
The officer, in fear for his safety and the safety of the security guard, discharged his weapon striking the offender, who died.  Sullivan said he was in the chest.
The man was identified as Marion Horton, 28, of the 400 block of West Division Street. He was pronounced dead at 7:12 a.m. at John H. Stroger, Jr. Hospital of Cook County.
Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 7 spokesman Patrick Camden said the incident started about 6:30 a.m. when the off-duty officer was seated at the front desk of the 7-story building as his partner, an armed female security guard who works for a private company, was outside doing a check of the parking lot. When she came across a man in the lobby, she told him to leave but he refused.
“He’s very combative and she’s struggling with him,’’  said Camden of the man in the lobby. “So the officer at the desk sees this and goes out to help her’’ .
The man finally left and went out into the parking lot area but began urinating on a truck parked in front of the doors. The off-duty officer told him again to leave and “go about your business’’  but he demanded: “What are you going to do about it?”
Camden said the off-duty officer told him: “I’m a  Chicago police officer -- just go away.’’ Replying; “ I 'aint going nowhere,’’ he began fighting again and the officer realized he was going to need to arrest him.
As he began positioning himself to place handcuffs on the man, the brawl escalated with all three as the man, who was about 200 pounds and 5-foot-10 or 11, pulled the off-duty officer to the ground and ripped out about a dozen of the woman’s braids.
“At this point the officer is concerned that this guy is going to get the woman’s gun so he pulled out his weapon and tells him he’s under arrest,’’ Camden said.  When the man lunged at him, he fired a shot and hit him in the chest, Camden said.
“This is no pushing and shoving fight. This is fighting to the point of exhaustion,’’ Camden said.
Camden said the two security officers suffered bruises and head injuries from her hair being pulled out.