By Rummana Hussain
Chicago Sun Times
CHICAGO — The 15-year-old boy who made national headlines for impersonating a Chicago Police officer last year was sentenced to juvenile prison Wednesday for pushing his mother and stealing a relative’s car in cases unrelated to his infamous “kid cop” stunt.
The boy could be held in a state facility for juveniles until he’s 21 -- but he also could be released earlier for good behavior, according to Tisa Morris, chief of the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Juvenile Justice Bureau.
However, if the teenager misbehaves while he’s imprisoned, he can be sentenced to four years in prison as an adult, Morris said.
The boy recently pleaded guilty to domestic battery for pushing his mom in the Jan. 20 incident. He also pleaded guilty to possession of a stolen motor vehicle for taking his uncle’s car for a spin while the older man watched television. The theft allegedly sparked the fight between the boy and his mother, prompting him to shove her while outside in the 7900 block of South Vincennes Avenue, police said.
The boy spoke very little in court Wednesday, except to acknowledge that he understood the terms of his sentence. “Yes sir,” he said responding to Juvenile Court Judge Paul Stralka, who explained that despite the teen’s bipolar disorder, a prison sentence would be needed to “to ensure the public’s safety.”
The boy’s mother, watching from a courtroom bench, declined comment.
The boy, who will turn 16 next month, made headlines -- and embarrassed the Chicago Police Department -- in January of last year when he walked into the Grand Crossing District police station in uniform and impersonated a police officer for hours. During his notorious caper, the boy went out on traffic patrol with an unwitting partner and drove the squad car.
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