Defendant says he's proud to be a cop-killer in murder trial, threatens to spit on prosecutor
Facing a murder bench trial in the July 2010 slaying of Chicago police officer Thor Soderberg, the defendant didn’t seem to do himself much good in his testimony this week.
During cross-examination, defendant Bryant Brewer angrily said he was proud to be a cop-killer; used derogatory language to refer to a female police officer who engaged in a gun battle with Brewer after Soderberg was shot; and threatened to spit on assistant Cook County state’s attorney Brian Sexton, reports the Chicago Tribune (reg. req.). Brewer also used largely unprintable language to insult Sexton, the newspaper says, although it’s not clear from the article whether he was on the stand throughout this time.
Earlier, witnesses described a dramatic scene at a police deployment station in the city’s downtrodden Englewood neighborhood, in which fellow officers heard shots and came running, a previous Chicago Tribune (reg. req.) article reported.
Soderberg was shot and killed in a parking lot adjacent to the station. A desk officer said she stepped outside after hearing the shots which killed Soderberg, and was targeted by the suspect, who allegedly fired at her using the slain officer’s service weapon. Brewer was eventually shot in the chest by a sergeant, but survived.
Lawyers for Brewer have claimed he shot Soderberg in self-defense. They are also expected to claim insanity.
Related coverage:
Chicago Tribune (reg. req.): “Expert unable to explain why police cameras missed fatal cop shooting”
