Numerous people spoke out at a Mundelein board meeting on Monday evening, calling for accountability and justice for a woman fatally shot by police while in a mental health crisis and armed with knives at a home in Mundelein last month.
The board meeting was held at the Mundelein Village Hall, 300 Plaza Circle, at 7 p.m. on Monday.
Mary Alice Love, 37, of Mundelein, was shot multiple times and killed by Mundelein Police Sergeant Christopher Brigano while police were responding to a report that Love was suicidal at her home in the 1100 block of Ashbrook Drive in Mundelein on May 11.
Mundelein Mayor Robin Meier began by commenting on the officer-involved shooting.
“As a board, as a community, we extend our heartfelt condolences to the Love family. While we may not fully understand your pain, we can empathize with you and continue to wish that healing process moves forward for you and your family and this community,” Meier said.
Meier said that the June 15 release of edited body-worn video and 911 call audio from the incident “was an important step in our ongoing efforts to be as transparent as possible as this matter moves forward.”
Meier added that while questions may remain about what happened, the release is a key part of the investigation.
“The investigative work being done is crucial to piecing together the events that unfolded that evening. However, we are not a party to the independent investigation being conducted by the Lake County Major Crimes Task Force and the Lake County State’s Attorney’s Office,” Meier said.
“We will eagerly await the completion of the investigation and take appropriate action after we’ve been able to evaluate investigators’ findings. We know that this process takes time and we also know that Miss Love’s family would like answers sooner rather than later. I can tell you that we do as well, but we must wait for the investigation to be completed, as difficult as that may seem. We understand that people want answers, and we support people exercising their First Amendment rights calling for answers,” Meier added.
The mayor committed to a process that respects all parties involved.
Multiple people spoke during the five-minute allotted time for each public comment.
Some were wearing shirts that said, “Mary Alice Forever in Our Hearts,” and many were wearing purple ribbons that were distributed in remembrance of Love.
A man from Chicago traveled to Mundelein and said, “I didn’t think such a horrific crime would be able to occur in a quaint north suburban town, but I was wrong.”
“I’m in the real estate field, and people from time to time ask my opinions on good areas to move to or to set up a business. Admittedly, I’m not as knowledgeable about northern Lake County as I am about other parts of the region, but if someone asks me about moving to Mundelein versus, say Vernon Hills or Libertyville, I would emphatically be able to respond with, ‘Whatever you do, don’t move to Mundelein. There’s a chance the police will kill you inside your own house, or there’s a chance you might live next to a murderer, send your kids to the same school and daycare as the murderer’s children,'” he said.
“Mundelein does not care about black people, Mundelein endorses extrajudicial murder, and the Mundelein Police are more dangerous to their citizens than any benefits they provide,” the man said as he closed his comment.
Christoper “Brotha” Blanks, the founder of the Black Abolition Movement for the Mind, asked the board to create a civilian office of police accountability for the village.
Blanks expressed skepticism at the Lake County Major Crime Task Force’s investigation, saying that it is not truly “independent” due to possible conflicts of interest among the investigators.
A woman who is friends with Jeffry, the mother of Love, said she has seen Jeffry struggling emotionally with the incident.
“This isn’t just about Mary Alice. It is about her family, it is about all the people that are packed in this room, and we ask like everybody else – release the facts. I stand here today because I know Jeffry Love, I know how deeply she loves, and I know that she deserves compassion and justice, but I want you to know her mother. No mother should ever have to bury her child,” she said.
A woman whose mother was friends with Love emotionally said that she is disappointed by the “lack of concern” shown by local officials.
“When a family is grieving the loss of a loved one, they should not have to fight for information. They should not have to fight for transparency, and they should not have to fight to protect the dignity and the memory of a loved one,” she said.
The woman stressed the importance of a transparent and independent investigation.
“Justice for Mary Alice Love must be served,” she added.
A college student related to the Love family expressed frustration towards village officials because she said they are not showing empathy.
“I have to take over my mom, I have to make sure she’s okay while she makes sure her mother is okay. It’s a cycle of hurt,” she said.
“I have not seen an ounce of remorse in y’all’s faces. Are we not angry enough?” she added.
Love’s brother-in-law, who is a resident of Mundelein, was angry and asked village officials to release the full, unedited body-worn camera video, calling the edited video that was released “garbage.”
Love’s aunt was also angry and said, “When these guys went into my niece’s home, they went in to do just what they did.”
“Today, when they go into your homes, someone is going to die, and that is what happened. Training has nothing to do with it,” she said.
Johnny, Love’s father, appeared to hold back tears while he recounted the moments leading up to the shooting.
Johnny called Sergeant Brigano a “coward” who “murdered, assassinated, slaughtered” his daughter.
A woman who had close ties to the family and helped care for Love told village officials that her life will never be the same.
“We cry every day for Mary Alice. Not a day goes by when I don’t see those bullets hitting her body and my baby on the ground and no one there to help her,” she said.
“She was the most loving person. You took the heart of our family. You took the family baby from us. No one will be the same cause of what you all did,” she said.
The woman presented a shirt that Love wore, which was a modified reference to The Star-Spangled Banner.
Love’s cousin was crying and called the incident an “unimaginable tragedy and loss that should’ve never happened.”
“My baby cousin was a beautiful beacon of light. She was kind, she was joyful, she gave the absolute best hugs. No matter what was happening in the world, a hug from her could make everything else fade away,” the cousin said.
The cousin proposed a “Love Law” that would ensure specific protocols where mental health professionals would lead the way when responding to mental health crises.
A three-year resident of Mundelein criticized how the police department framed the incident in their release of the body-worn camera video and 911 call audio.
“This was a deliberate choice to defend and not reflect,” the resident said. She called for the termination of Sergeant Brigano and the suspension of all officers involved.
Ralph Peterson Jr., a local activist, said that officers should’ve locked the patio door when Love was approaching it.
Peterson also criticized how Sergeant Brigano shot Love four times.
“He shot her four times. That makes a statement. Really, that makes an ugly statement. Not one time,” he said.
“We’re asking for transparency – what we mean by that is show all the officers’ bodycam. If nothing was done wrong, there should be no problem,” he added.
Love’s nephew said his aunt protected him from bullies when he was younger and that he was here “to do the same for her.”
“Your system has failed. If that video that was released on Monday was your best foot forward, all it showed was a cascade of failures from minute one, and it compounded on each other until she was dead,” he said.
He referenced Police Chief Seeley’s “Message from the Chief” on the village’s website.
“Courtesy? Failed. Dignity? Failed. Service? Failed. You failed all of those things. That’s your mission,” he told the police chief.
Several other family members and relatives of Love spoke out at the board meeting to remember her and call for justice.
Last Thursday, around 80-100 people protested in front of the Mundelein Village Hall, 300 Plaza Circle, and then marched to the Mundelein Police Department.
Members of Love’s family and the community are expected to continue protesting the incident in subsequent board meetings.