Three Chicago Officers Fired

Three Chicago police officers were fired last month by the Chicago Police Board, according to records made public Friday.

Officer Nathan Hicks ran away when a shoplifting suspect drew a gun, leaving another officer to confront the man alone, the records said. Hicks had finished his probationary period just a few months before the incident on June 3, 2006, at a Dominick's.

When the suspect, James King, pulled the gun, Hicks and two probationary officers ran toward the back of the store, according to testimony given to the board. The other officer fatally shot King, 47. Hicks and the two probationary officers returned with their weapons drawn after the shooting ended, the records showed. The probationary officers were fired earlier.

Hicks testified that he didn't realize King had a weapon but that he ran for cover when shots rang out. Police officials said officers are trained not to retreat when confronted with a deadly threat but to take nearby cover and protect civilians and other officers from harm by firing at the threat if necessary.

The board also agreed with the Chicago Police Department's recommendation to discharge Wentworth District Officer David Gonzalez for knocking down a Summit police officer in a fight with another bar patron while drinking off-duty in a suburban bar in September 2004, the records show.

The board also agreed to fire Officer Marisol Rodriguez, a Lincoln District officer accused of submitting false medical documents while on the medical roll.

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