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Almost a year after he was charged for wrestling a young Park Ridge teen face down on a sidewalk in Park Ridge’s Uptown area, former Chicago Police Department Sergeant Michael Vitellaro will stand trial June 5, according to court records.
Vitellaro faces charges of aggravated battery and two counts of official misconduct, according to previous reporting, and will plead not guilty to all three charges.
According to a statement from the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office, Vitellaro found his son’s missing bike at the scene of the incident, on the sidewalk along South Northwest Highway. When the Park Ridge boy, who was then 14 years old, went to move the bike out of the way, the statement continued, Vitellaro pushed the boy to the ground, held him there and called 911.
A 45-second video of the altercation, which circulated widely on social media last summer, shows Vitellaro accusing the boy of taking his son’s bike while restraining the teen flat on the sidewalk with a knee on his back.
According to the statement from the state’s attorney’s office, Vitellaro the next day filled out forms characterizing the incident as an off-duty arrest and the boy as a noncooperative offender.
The Chicago Police Department relieved Vitellaro of his police powers the day before the Cook County State’s Attorney approved charges.
The family of the teenager, who is of Puerto Rican descent, has said through their attorney that they believe the incident was a case of racial profiling.
The incident kicked off a flurry of comments and questions, some angry, from Park Ridge residents with concerns about how welcoming the city is to people of color.
The trial is set for 9 a.m. at the Skokie Courthouse.
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