Chicago PD Officer Faces Termination In Connection With Gun Incident

EVERGREEN PARK, IL — A Chicago police officer who has been charged with firing a gun in an Evergreen Park store parking lot could face losing her job and will face a disciplinary hearing in the matter, officials announced on Thursday.

Chicago Police Sgt. Oneta Sampson Carney has been charged with a felony count of recklessly discharging a firearm after police said she fired a gun after her vehicle was taken outside of a Sam’s Club store on Western Avenue, police said.

Evergreen Park police sought charges against the off-duty CPD officer at the conclusion of their investigation. The Cook County State's Attorney's Office approved the reckless discharge of a firearm charge.

A CPD official had previously recommended that Sampson Carney, 59, be fired but Chicago Police Superintendent David Brown recommended a 180-day suspension instead. On Thursday, however, Andrea Kersten, the chief administrator of the Civilian Office of Police Accountability, said that the officer would face a disciplinary hearing to determine her future with the department.

Police said after the October, 2021 incident that Sampson Carney, who was off-duty at the time, fired a 9 mm round after police said a person approached the officer and her husband and asked if they needed assistance loading their groceries into their car. Instead, the person jumped behind the wheel of the vehicle and took off, police said. When the driver slowed down to allow an accomplice to get into the vehicle, Sampson Carney fired her gun.

She has pleaded not guilty to the felony charge.

ABC 7 reported that Kersten has recommended the firing after she determined that the officer did not notify her superiors about the incident and said there were other firearm violations related to the incident. Brown suggested that Sampson Carney should not be reprimanded for not reporting the incident, the station reported.