Five years after 13-year-old Adam Toledo was shot and killed by a Chicago police officer, Little Village residents gathered Sunday behind Farragut Career Academy for what his family calls an "angelversary" memorial. Candles flickered, flowers piled up, and grief sat heavy as Adam's mother, Elizabeth Toledo, told the crowd, "This shouldn't have happened." The remembrance comes just days before a civil-rights trial over the shooting is set to begin on April 6.
Family Returns to Farragut to Honor Adam
The memorial, described by the family as Adam's "angelversary," took place behind Farragut Career Academy at 2345 S. Christiana Ave., where loved ones and neighbors gathered to mark the somber milestone. Attendees lit candles, left flowers and listened as speakers used the occasion to press once again for accountability and changes to how Chicago police operate, according to CBS Chicago.
Split-Second Shooting Under the Microscope
The shooting on March 29, 2021 followed a nighttime foot chase in an alley near 24th Street and Sawyer Avenue. Officer Eric Stillman fired his weapon less than one second after Adam dropped a gun, an interval measured at about 838 milliseconds. Body-worn camera video appears to show Adam with his hands up and empty at the instant he was shot, while surveillance footage from another angle appears to capture a possible throwing motion just moments earlier, as reported by ABC7 Chicago.
Watchdog vs. Top Cop on Discipline
In 2022, the Civilian Office of Police Accountability recommended that Stillman be fired. Then-Superintendent David Brown disagreed, advising a suspension of no more than five days. That clash over consequences sent the case to the Chicago Police Board for a formal hearing, according to WTTW News. The gap between COPA's push for termination and department leadership's call for minimal discipline has become a central flashpoint in the larger accountability debate.
Civil-Rights Trial Set to Test Competing Narratives
Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx declined to file criminal charges against Stillman. In response, Adam's family brought a civil-rights lawsuit seeking damages over the shooting. That civil trial is scheduled to begin April 6, where attorneys on both sides will present evidence and witness testimony in an effort to cement their version of what happened in that Little Village alley, according to CBS Chicago.
Little Village Still Demanding Answers
Adam's killing sparked street protests and amplified calls to halt or sharply restrict police foot pursuits, a long-standing concern for community advocates. Those demands resurfaced at Sunday's memorial, where speakers again pressed for tighter rules on chases and broader reforms to policing, as ABC7 Chicago and other outlets have noted.
For Little Village, the "angelversary" was both a memorial and a message. Five years after the shooting, the case continues to shape public debate and policy talk in Chicago. With the civil-rights trial set to open next week, arguments over how the shooting should be judged are poised to shift from the alley where Adam fell to the courtroom where his family's lawsuit will finally be heard.
