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yesterday

Trial Opens for Man Accused of Killing Officer Andrés Vásquez Lasso

Prosecutors will show Officer Andrés Vásquez Lasso’s body-camera recording to reconstruct the shooting for jurors.

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A large photo of police Officer Andrés Mauricio Vásquez Lasso is displayed before the start of his funeral Mass at St. Rita of Cascia Shrine Chapel on March 9, 2023, in Chicago. Vásquez Lasso was fatally shot in the line of duty in the Gage Park neighborhood on March 1, 2023. (Stacey Wescott/Chicago Tribune)
Chicago police Superintendent David Brown and Mayor Lori Lightfoot present Milena Estepa de Vásquez with the Chicago flag from the coffin of her husband, slain Chicago police Officer Andrés Mauricio Vásquez Lasso, after his funeral Mass at St. Rita of Cascia Shrine Chapel, March 9, 2023. Vásquez Lasso, 32, was shot and killed as he responded to reports of a man chasing a woman with a gun in Gage Park. (E. Jason Wambsgans/Chicago Tribune)
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Overview

  • A jury was empaneled Monday at the Leighton Criminal Court Building and opening statements began Tuesday in Steven Montano’s trial.
  • Prosecutors intend to present footage from Officer Andrés Vásquez Lasso’s body-worn camera to detail the March 2023 foot-chase shooting.
  • Montano, 21, faces first-degree murder charges along with two gun-related felonies and a misdemeanor count of interfering with a domestic violence report.
  • Officer Vásquez Lasso, 32, had served five years after immigrating from Colombia and moved into the Gage Park district he patrolled.
  • The trial underscores the unpredictable hazards of domestic disturbance calls and follows department efforts to expand police accountability through statewide body-camera mandates.