Bodycam Video Released Of 4-Year-Old's Fatal Shooting, No Charges For IL Officer

MACOMB, IL — Authorities released bodycam footage Monday of the circumstances leading up to a police shooting that left a 57-year-old man and a 4-year-old boy dead more than four months earlier in Macomb.

The Macomb Police Department's disclosure of the video comes after McDonough County State’s Attorney Matt Kwacala announced last week that no charges will be filed against the officers involved, citing an Illinois State Police investigation and a review of the case by a special prosecutor.

The fatal shooting took place around 10 p.m. on March 16 after Macomb police were dispatched to multiple 911 calls about ongoing domestic violence in a North Charles Street apartment, authorities said.

Officers Nick Goc and Korri Cameron arrived to find blood in the stairwell and heard a commotion through the door. The officers forced their way inside and found a 36-year-old woman, later identified as Keianna Miller, suffering from multiple stab wounds and screaming for help.

“He’s stabbing me,” she shouted, telling the officers, “My son’s in there.”

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Inside the apartment, the officers confronted a knife-wielding naked man later identified as Anthony George.

Goc orders him to show his hands, but George lunges out of sight and the screams of Miller's son Terrell are audible.

"[George] eventually reappears with a knife in each hand, holding the child to his chest, one knife around the child's waist and one around the child's throat," Macomb Police Chief Jeff Hamer says in the video's narration.

"A Macomb officer discharged a single bullet," Hamer said. "The threat ended."

Following the shooting, Macomb police turned the investigation over to state police, who collected evidence, interviewed witnesses and reviewed footage.

Jonathan Barnard, a special prosecutor for the Illinois State’s Attorney Appellate Prosecutor’s Office, sent a letter to Kwacala on July 8 finding there was "no basis for any criminal action or prosecution that is supportable under the facts of this case against any of the officers involved in this tragic incident."

Marleen Suarez, Keianna Miller's attorney, said she believes the officer acted recklessly when he fired a single bullet at George as he held the 4-year-old hostage at knifepoint.

At a news conference Monday outside the Macomb Police Department, Suarez said she plans to file a civil lawsuit.

Miller told reporters she feels like her son died for nothing and will never receive justice, but she does not plan to give up.

"This isn't the end. We're going to get our justice. I don't care how long it takes, we're going to get our justice," she said. "If I have to go all the way to the Supreme Court, I'm going."

The decision not to bring charges in the Macomb case contrasts with Sangamon County prosecutors decision to charge fired sheriff's deputy Sean Grayson with first-degree murder, aggravated battery with a firearm and official misconduct charges in the killing of Sonya Massey, a 36-year-old woman fatally shot in her home.

Following the release of the approximately four-minute video, Macomb police issued a statement promising further updates until the internal investigation is complete.

"While the decision to release this footage is supported by our commitment to transparency," it said, "our hearts and thoughts remain with the families affected by this tragedy."