Video Shows 2nd Bar Brawl With Chicago Cop Who Shot Teen, Grandma

CHICAGO — A cellphone video of a scuffle between Northwest Side bar patrons and an off-duty Chicago police offer who was at the center of a 2015 fatal shooting shows the shirtless cop throwing one of the men to the ground while confronting the other individuals who are shooting the footage. Chicago's Civilian Office of Police Accountability released the video Tuesday.

This is the second public brawl involving Ofc. Robert Rialmo. In July — three days before the latest confrontation — a judge deliberated for an hour before acquitting Rialmo of two counts of misdemeanor battery after he was accused of punching two men in December at Moretti's Ristorante & Pizzeria on the Far Northwest Side, an incident that also was caught on video. An earlier theft charge in the case had been dropped by prosecutors before the trial.

Rialmo's most recent incident happened at Teaser's Pub, 7123 W. Higgins Ave., in Norwood Park. According to Chicago police, he was mistaken for someone else by other customers. That led to an argument, and beer was spilled on Rialmo.

RELATED: Chicago Cop Who Shot Teen, Grandma Involved In Another Bar Fight

The officer and the customers began to tussle, and they eventually were thrown out of the bar. Another fight broke out in the street in front of a taco joint about a block away from the establishment they had left.

In the cellphone video, Rialmo is being stopped by a man as the officer tries to approach another man shooting the footage. The man with the cellphone camera can be heard saying, "He's a cop. Supposedly a cop. But he's drunk."

As Rialmo tries to confront the person with the camera, he can be heard asking why the men are apologizing and asking the individual shooting the video to be a man.

RELATED: Off-Duty Bar Fight Video Released Of Cop Who Shot LeGrier, Jones

Rialmo eventually shoves the man trying to restrain him to the street, yelling "Get the f--k off me, bitch." He then rushes to the man with the camera and the video stops.

So far, no arrests or charges have resulted from the brawl, which is still under investigation. Rialmo and the other individuals involved have been questioned, and police said they have been cooperative.

No matter what the outcome in the case, Rialmo could still face punishment by COPA stemming from the incident. Authorities also have yet to decide on the officer's job status in regard to a fatal shooting on Dec. 26, 2015, following a call concerning a bat-wielding teenager at a West Garfield Park home.

RELATED: Off-Duty Chicago Cop Who Shot Teen, Grandma Cleared in Bar Brawl

In that incident, Rialmo shot and killed Quintonio LeGrier, a 19-year-old engineering student at Northern Illinois University who had been accused of threatening his father. Rialmo claimed he fired at LeGrier because the teen was swinging a metal bat at him.

LeGrier wasn't the only victim from the shots fired by Rialmo. Bettie Jones, 55, had opened the door for Rialmo, and the grandmother and mother of five had been standing behind LeGrier when she was accidentally hit by gunfire.

The Cook County State's Attorney's Office decided not to file criminal charges against Rialmo following an investigation by the Independent Police Review Authority, the Illinois State Police and the FBI. Prosecutors cited "insufficient evidence" to prove the officer didn't act in self-defense in the shooting as the reason not to press charges. COPA, however, called the shooting unjustified and asked that Rialmo, who remains on paid administrative duty following the shooting, be fired.

RELATED: Jury's Verdict Against Chicago Cop In Shooting Lawsuit Reversed

In June, a Cook County jury in the wrongful death civil case brought by LeGrier's family ruled that the shooting was not justified and awarded the teen's estate $1.05 million in damages. That decision was reversed by a judge, however, citing a signed special question to the jury that determined Rialmo feared for his safety when he opened fire. The judge ruled that that question — known as a special interrogatory — outweighed the jury's original verdict.

But the reversal did not change the jury's verdict concerning Rialmo's countersuit against LeGrier's family. Jurors sided with the officer, who blamed the teen for the shooting and claimed it caused him emotional distress, but they didn't award him damages.

The city reached a tentative $16 million settlement with Jones' family in May concerning a similar civil case. The City Council still needs to approve the proposed deal and if that happens, the payout would be among the biggest by the city concerning a police-involved shooting.

Chicago police Ofc. Robet Rialmo grabs the arm of one man he tussled with in a bar fight in July on the Northwest Side. (Image via Civilian Office of Police Accountability)