'Protective Takedown' Of Armed Teen Could Have Been Tragic: Judge

SKOKIE, IL — A teenager who took his mother's gun and an ounce of marijuana to a Des Plaines park was taken to the ground after he refused to show his hands to a police officer, authorities said.

Benjamin Curtis, 19, of Des Plaines, was arrested shortly after 1 a.m. Monday and charged with aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, possession of cannabis by a minor and possession of drug paraphernalia.

That morning, a Des Plaines police officer encountered Curtis while investigating a graffiti-related incident near Apache Park, which is a "known gang area with a high amount of drug sales," according to Cook County Assistant State's Attorney Connor Woods.

Curtis appeared "visibly nervous" and looked to be hiding something behind his back as he stood outside a car, Woods said Tuesday at a bond hearing in Skokie.

The prosecutor said the uniformed officer, who was working alone at the time, "performed a protective takedown" when the teen refused repeated commands to show his hands.

During the scuffle, a loaded pistol fell to the ground, he said.

After Curtis was taken into custody, police reported a search turned up two jars with 28 grams of suspected cannabis, 49 baggies labeled "cannabis flower" and a marijuana grinder.

As a person under the age of 21, Curtis does not have a firearm owners identification card and is not legally permitted to possess recreational marijuana.

"He took the weapon from his mother," Woods said.

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The gun offense is a class 4 felony, while the marijuana charges are both misdemeanors.

Defense attorney Bill Beattie said Curtis was a lifelong Des Plaines resident and 2020 Maine West High School graduate who worked at a local grocery store until the week before his arrest. He requested that Cook County Associate Judge Anthony Calabrese allow Curtis to be released on his own recognizance.

"I am very confident that he will be in court wherever you want him to be, whenever you want him to be," Beattie told the judge.

Calabrese agreed that Curtis was not a flight risk, but he said the circumstances of the arrest and gun charge were very concerning.

"In this sad circumstance of a society we're living now, the likelihood of a tragedy occurring is extraordinarily high, and when someone gets shot by the police ... it turns the community on its ear," Calabrese said.

"Oftentimes cities have burned as a result of circumstances between citizens and law enforcement that didn't end well," the judge added.

Curtis' family posted $1,000 cash for his bond and he was released on bail, he was later permitted to reside in both Florida and Illinois.

Update: As of Dec. 17, prosecutors had yet to present the case to a grand jury for indictment.

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