The father of a slain Evanston man is suing the city and its police and fire departments, claiming they waited too long to respond to his son’s shooting last year.
In a lawsuit filed Monday in federal court, John Bamberg says first responders “did not arrive timely” after his 23-year-old son was shot in the early morning hours of Dec. 12, 2012, near Evanston Township High School, 1600 Dodge Ave. Although Javar Bamberg was able to breathe, talk and move after he was shot at about 2 a.m. in the 1700 block of Grey Avenue, authorities never called paramedics, the lawsuit alleges.
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“Despite being told by the 911 caller of Javar’s need for immediate medical care and after witnessing Javar’s dire medical condition at the scene, the Evanston personnel prevented the timely provision of necessary emergency medical care by delaying the immediate transportation of Javar to the nearest area hospital or trauma center,” the lawsuit says.
The nine-count lawsuit seeks unspecified damages and alleges wrongful death, intentional infliction of emotional distress and civil rights violations.
It remains unclear how much time passed between the shooting and when Javar Bamberg died. The Cook County medical examiner’s office said it did not dispatch an investigator, but Javar Bamberg was pronounced dead on the scene. His death was ruled a homicide.
Anthony Peraica, attorney for John Bamberg, suggested his client’s son may be alive today if authorities had shown up earlier than they did.
“He was left there for hours in the alley to bleed to death without the police or paramedics to provide the medical treatment that perhaps could’ve saved his life,” Peraica said.
The lawyer added he plans to subpoena “all documentation” of the incident, including police reports and 911 calls.
At the time, police linked the slaying to a gang-related feud between extended families dating back to 2005, when a 22-year-old man connected to the Bambergs was gunned down inside the now-defunct Keg of Evanston. In November of last year, 19-year-old Justin Murray was shot to death outside his grandmother’s house in west Evanston, the latest killing police have tied to the families’ conflict.
Evanston police have zeroed in on persons of interest in the shooting death of Javar Bamberg, but the case remains open, Cmdr. Jay Parrott said Tuesday .
John Bamberg has been vocal about his frustration with the investigation, appearing before city committees at least twice after his son’s death to demand more information.
“We still don’t know exactly what happened to Javar,” John Bamberg said during a City Council meeting in January. “The police have decided to have nothing to say to the Bambergs at all.”
(Father of slain Evanston man to sue city)
In January, John Bamberg reached out to the Living & Driving While Black Foundation, a nonprofit organization headed by a former NAACP official. David L. Lowery, Jr., CEO and founder of the group, said the foundation learned authorities did not do a “real thorough job” of looking into Javar Bamberg’s shooting death.
“We take claims of civil rights very seriously and we vigorously go after the people who commit these crimes,” Lowery added.
City attorney Grant Farrar said the city has no comment on the lawsuit.
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Twitter: @PatrickSvitek
