Town will pay $7.5M to settle lawsuit stemming from killing of security guard who detained alleged shooting suspect
Jemel Roberson was wearing clothing with the term "Security" prominently visible on it at the time that he was slain.
The family of security guard Jemel Roberson — who was shot and killed by an Illinois police officer while on duty in November 2018 — has reached a settlement with the village of Midlothian for more than $7 million, but his mother wants to see justice served.
The Chicago Tribune reported that the settlement resulted from the lawsuit that Roberson’s estate filed against Officer Ian Covey and the village of Midlothian in November 2019. As a condition of the settlement, Midlothian officials will not admit to any misconduct.
“There is nothing that can be done to bring back Jemel, but this puts his daughter in a financial position that she will be taken care of for the rest of her life,” said John Coyle, an attorney with the firm representing the Roberson estate.
Roberson, 26, was killed after a fight broke out between two groups of men inside the bar where he was working as a security guard on Nov. 11, 2018. Shots were fired and four people were struck by bullets, including a man who was thought to be the gunman.
Roberson was holding the shooter at gunpoint on the ground during the commotion when Covey arrived carrying an AR-15 weapon. State police said Covey told Roberson to put down the gun, then shot him four times when he didn’t comply.
Witnesses, however, said the officer did not give Roberson enough time to respond to his verbal commands and he disregarded their warnings that he was a security guard, not a suspect. Roberson was also wearing clothing with the term “Security” prominently marked on it, according to the witnesses, the Tribune reported.
Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx in October 2020 declined to file charges against Cove, citing insufficient evidence.
Roberson’s mother, Beatrice Roberson, told CBS 2 that the settlement money doesn’t matter to her, indicating that she will continue to look for new evidence for Foxx’s office to review. Evidence that will demand accountability, because she believes that the officer who killed her son should be behind bars.
“My son was shot four times in his back, and this murderer gets away? There’s no justice for Jemel,” she said. “I will never accept that as an apology, because I’m a person. My son was a person. It’s not about the money. They need to look me in my face and apologize.”
According to the Tribune, Avontea Boose is both the administrator of the Roberson estate and the plaintiff in the lawsuit. Boose was Roberson’s girlfriend at the time of his killing. They have a son, Tristan, who was then 9 months old. Boose was also expecting a baby girl — Justice, the sole beneficiary of Roberson’s estate — who turned 3 last month.
A status date, on which a Cook County judge will approve the settlement, has not yet been set.
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