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Authorities have released graphic video showing the moment officers fatally shot a man who was firing two guns into the air in Buffalo Grove last month.
The Buffalo Grove Police Department responded to a 911 call around 12:29 a.m. December 2 for a report of a man with a gun in the area of Radcliffe Road and Boxwood Lane in Buffalo Grove.
According to the 911 call audio, which was released on Wednesday, the caller reported, “There’s a dude standing out there and he’s all crazy.”
The caller told dispatchers that the man was armed with a 9mm handgun and a .45 caliber handgun. “The dude just popped off two rounds,” the caller told dispatchers.
The caller also told the dispatcher “[…] this guy is dangerous so don’t — just use a lethal instead of a non-lethal.”
When the dispatcher asked the caller who the gunman was, the caller stated, “Well that would be me.”
The caller was later identified as Brian Christopher Howard, 25, of Elgin.
Howard told the dispatcher he loves “everything that they do,” referring to police officers, and said, “but I’m a bad dude and it’s about time that I get what’s coming.”
The dispatcher asked the man numerous times to drop his weapons as the officers were responding but Howard refused.
“I mean, I just flashed off a 9 and a .45 so I’m going to jail regardless, and that’s the thing for me so just tell them to shoot to kill,” Howard said during the call.
Dashcam video, which was also released Wednesday, shows officers rushing to the scene with their lights and sirens activated.
The first officer to arrive on the scene located Howard behind a vacant church at 1250 Radcliffe Road.
Howard was holding two handguns and began walking towards the officers. The man then started shooting both guns into the air, the video showed.
Officers gave Howard commands to stop but he refused and continued walking towards them while still holding the guns.
“Hands up! Put your hands up! Stop! Stop moving!” an officer yelled at Howard, according to the video.
One of the officers fired several rounds from his handgun but did not strike the man. A second officer fired shots, which did strike Howard.
The officers performed CPR on him. Paramedics pronounced Howard dead at the scene.
No one else was injured during the incident but the two officers involved were transported to the hospital for observation.
The two officers are seasoned officers and are on paid administrative leave, which is standard protocol, according to Buffalo Grove Police Chief Steven Casstevens.
“No officer ever wants to take the life of another person. That being said, officers are often placed in split-second decisions where they are forced to take action that unfortunately results in deadly force,” Casstevens said at a December press conference.
The Lake County Major Crime Task Force is leading the investigation and the case will be reviewed by the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office.
The 911 audio and dashcam footage, which contains graphic images and language, can be viewed here.