Lightfoot Lashes Out at Media in Heated News Conference About Fallen Officer: ‘That’s Offensive and Insulting’

Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot lashed out at the media on Wednesday during a heated press conference in the aftermath of an incident in which a Chicago police officer was shot and killed, with another one severely killed, at a traffic stop over the weekend.

Two brothers have been arrested and charged in the shooting.

After lamenting the shooting death of officer Ella French, 29, in which Lightfoot said that the shooters “seem to have absolutely no regard for the sanctity of life that is really hard to fathom,” the mayor decried what she called “this moment where people feel like it is their right to spew hatred at everyone that they don’t agree with or make fun and mock, usually anonymously and cowardly, from social media, not confronting somebody directly and talking [to] them, but using the power of the pen and the keyboard to just spew unbelievable hate.”

Lightfoot remarked that there is “larger question” than what happened to the Chicago police officers who turned their backs on Lightfoot during her visit to the hospital on Saturday night where the critically injured officer was being treated.

“It’s why do we think it is okay for people to engage in such nasty, vicious talk orally, or worse, on social media,” said Lightfoot. “And then have it repeated by media as if it is fact and true.”

Lightfoot went on to acknowledge that the press “plays a very important role in our democracy.”

“But you lose me, you lose me when it’s a race to the bottom and it’s all about the fight and it’s all about the conflict,” she said.

Lightfoot vented that “some of the reporting I’ve seen this week is just sickening.”

“We all need to ask ourselves what we can do better to show our people everywhere that we have the capacity to be human beings again,” she said.

Eric Carter, the Chicago Police Department’s second-in-command, for calling off a traditional honor guard and bagpipe salute outside the Cook County Medical Examiner’s office as French’s body was taken to there. Carter was in charge since the CPD Superintendent David Brown was in Dallas following the death of his mother.

“We don’t have 20 minutes for this sh*t,” said Carter on the police scanner, according to The Chicago Sun-Times. “We’re not waiting on the bagpipes. Go ahead and get the vehicle inside. Take it all the way inside. Do not stop.”

In response to a question from local outlet WGN-TV News’s Tahman Bradley about officers being upset at Carter and to the tradition not taking place, Lightfoot sarcastically said, “Thanks for listening, Tahman. But I’ll answer your question anyway.”

“The reporting on that is just not true,” said Lightfoot. “It’s not true.”

Lightfoot citied “Covid protocols” by the medical examiner’s office. However, the medical examiner’s office told Chicago media outlets that no new rules were imposed.

Lightfoot also defended Carter and said he “made the right call” to skip the ritual.

“I support what he did. And I’m horrified that in this moment, people are trying to savage him for whatever agenda or purpose,” she said.

Addressing the reporters, Lightfoot said, “I would just caution you all. Be careful. Be careful.”

“Check your sources. Make sure they’re accurate,” she continued. “Get the right context because I know firsthand, it’s really hard when the media becomes ferocious in propagating a story that’s just not true.”

In response to reports that Lightfoot visited the injured officer’s family in the hospital on Saturday night despite being requested by the family not to do so, the mayor laughed off a question by Craig Wall of the local ABC outlet, WLS-TV, about that.

“Craig, you know what,” said Lightfoot, appearing irritated. “I’m not gonna to respond to that. I don’t force my way anywhere. And that’s offensive, frankly, that you would ask me that question.”

“I mean, just think about it, Craig, for 10 seconds,” she continued. “I just sat here and talked about the fact that we’ve got to be really careful and you have to be really careful in your reporting and be responsible. And you just keep being lobbing this nonsense that’s offensive and insulting and really does a disservice to the moment that we’re in.”

“So come on. Give me a break,” added Lightfoot. “It’s just what else, what else are you gonna mine from the bottom of the chum barrel? “You’re better than that. You’re better than that. You’re better than that.”

Watch above, via Mayor Lightfoot’s official YouTube channel.