Chicago man charged with fatally shooting Oak Park police detective
Jerell Thomas
OAK LAWN, Ill. - A Chicago man has been charged with first-degree murder in the fatal shooting of an Oak Park police detective Friday morning.
Jerell Thomas, 37, was charged in connection with the death of 40-year-old Detective Allan Reddins. Thomas faces additional charges of attempted murder of a peace officer, possession of a stolen firearm and unlawful use of a weapon by a felon.
Reddins, who had been with the Oak Park Police Department since 2019, was shot after responding to a report of a person with a gun leaving a Chase Bank on the 1000 block of Lake Street. He was transported to Loyola Medical Center, where he later died.
Investigators said that as Reddins and other officers approached Thomas a few blocks away from the bank, he refused to follow their commands and opened fire, striking Reddins. This marks the first line-of-duty death for an Oak Park police officer since 1938.
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Thomas, who was wounded in the leg during the incident, is currently hospitalized at Loyola Medical Center with non-life-threatening injuries. A bond hearing has not yet been scheduled.
Thomas has a lengthy criminal history, including multiple arrests for aggravated battery to a police officer, domestic battery, battery, and resisting arrest.
As per standard department policy, the Illinois State Police Public Integrity Task Force has been called in to assist with the investigation.