William Lee, Chicago Tribune –
A Chicago police officer accidentally shot himself in the leg while trying to arrest three men this morning following a miles-long pursuit that ended with a crash near Rainbow Beach on the South Side, officials said.
The officer was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn,according to police and union officials, who said the wound was not serious. His name was not released.
A Chicago police spokesman had no details on the shooting.
Pat Camden, a spokesman for the Fraternal Order of Police, said the incident began when the three men sed away from a traffic stop near 67th Street and Racine Avenue at about 1:45 a.m. Officers in the Englewood police district called in the pursuit as the three men led officers on a chase of more than five miles east.
The chase ended near the South Side beach at 79th Street and South Shore Drive when the suspects’ vehicle collided with a chain-link fence, Camden said.
The vehicle then lurched backward toward an approaching Gresham District tactical officer, who accidentally shot himself while trying to jump out of the way, Camden said.
The officer suffered a gunshot wound to the right calf and a broken bone, Camden said.
Police took the three men into custody and recovered three handguns, Camden said.
