Evanston Library Staffer Quits Police Job While Under Investigation

EVANSTON, IL — Video obtained by Patch shows the confrontation between an armed Evanston Public Library staffer and a patron that led to discipline for the staffer and criminal charges for the patron.

Abah Antonio drew a pistol during a fight with Milton Altamirano-Sanchez, a 31-year-old homeless patron he had encountered lying on the floor on the afternoon of Jan. 9.

At the time of his confrontation with Altamirano-Sanchez, Antonio was a probationary officer with the Niles Police Department, records show.

Antonio, a library employee since 2017, had previously resigned from the Evanston Police Department, where his probationary period was extended after he was disciplined four times in eight months.

According to Antonio's account of the library incident, he called an ambulance for the patron after he was asked to, then told him to sit up on the chair if he was not "seriously having back issues."

"Keep talking, and I will rock you," Altamirano-Sanchez said, according to Antonio's report.

"You, you're not. I'm the library safety officer and an off-duty police officer." Antonio recalled replying.

"I don't give a f----," Altamirano-Sanchez said, after being shown the police badge, according to Antonio.

Altamirano-Sanchez attacks Antonio, and as the two men fight, Antonio falls to the ground. After returning to his feet, he draws his off-duty Glock 19 and keeps it pointed at Antonio as he follows him around the library.

Video shows patrons fleeing and ducking, and they find themselves in the crossfire.

In a Jan. 25 memo reviewing Antonio's conduct, Niles Police Cmdr. Kelly Eckardt said he violated department policies regarding use of force.

The probationary officer also failed to engage in de-escalation techniques by antagonizing the patron by suggesting he was not really injured, the commander said.

"While Officer Antonio may have felt in fear of great bodily harm when down on the ground fighting with the suspect, he drew his firearm when he got off the floor," Eckardt said. "The unarmed suspect was walking away, was no longer was an immediate threat to Officer Antonio and was not aggressive toward any patrons. Officer Antonio should not have his firearm trained on the suspect if he was not a threat."

Antonio had the potential to hit many innocent bystanders if he had fired, and he appeared to show "blatant disregard" for who was behind his target, Eckardt said.

At one point, he appears to have his finger on the trigger, and for some reason periodically holds the gun with one hand, according to the commander's memo.

"From the video alone, it shows Ofc. Antonio's gun was pointed at multiple patrons as he followed the suspect around, some of who were ducking to stay out of the way," Eckardt said. "Antonio broke the basic rules of firearm safety and handled his weapon in an extremely dangerous manner."

"It should be noted, this is the second time in a span of a few months where Ofc. Antonio pointed his firearm at a person," Eckardt said, noting he did not heed his training about ways to avoid use-of-force incidents. "I am concerned he did not learn from the last incident, which was less than 2 months ago. It should also be noted, Ofc. Antonio is still on probation. Due to multiple policy violations and blatant disregard of firearm safety, I am recommending termination."

The next day, a Niles police detective sent a memo to Deputy Chief Joseph Romano informing him that Antonio had falsely claimed in a police report that he had spoken to a witness when body-worn camera footage showed that he had not. The incident was initially classified as a domestic battery that, when reviewed by prosecutors, resulted in an arrest warrant for home invasion and burglary.

"The issue that is created from the discrepancy is that it can call in to question Officer [Antonio]'s integrity and create a credibility issue once this case move through the court system," Det. Sgt. Michael Boba told Romano in the Jan. 26 memo.

On Jan. 31, Romano recommended to the chief that Antonio be placed on paid leave. He said the investigation into the Evanston library incident remained in its fact-finding stage, but Antonio had also been involved in six use-of-force incidents, three car crashes and two vehicle pursuits in a one-year period.

Among those incidents are a May 25, 2022, incident where he failed to put his squad car in park before exiting, resulting in it rolling into some shopping carts in the parking lot of Golf Milwaukee Plaza.

Supervisors documented another policy violation during a Nov. 25, 2022, arrest in which Antonio appeared to accidentally activate his Taser and failed to conduct a proper search of someone before putting them into a squad car, records show.

On Feb. 1, Antonio, who has not responded to requests for comment, submitted the following memo to Romano.

"Due to personal reasons I Abah Antonio is resigning from Niles Police Department Effective on February 1, 2023," it said.

While Antonio is no longer a Niles police officer, he was permitted to keep his Evanston Public Library job despite violating the city's weapons-free workplace policy. As Patch previously reported, he was permitted to take his one-shift suspension in the form of a floating holiday pursuant to the terms of the city's contract with the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, or AFSCME, which covers library workers.