Eddie Russell Jr.

The Washington Post's Fatal Force database records Eddie Russell Jr. in a fatal on-duty police shooting on 2017-09-20 in Peoria, IL. Individual circumstances and legal outcome require case-specific review.

What happened

Eddie Russell Jr., 25, was fatally shot by Peoria police on September 20, 2017, after a bank robbery and a two-hour standoff at his mother's house. Investigators identified Russell as the suspect in an armed robbery earlier that day. Officers surrounded the house and attempted to communicate by phone and loudspeaker, with his mother helping them. Police said Russell emerged and raised a firearm toward officers, who shot him at least 17 times. His mother, Anita Johnson, said officials knew Russell lived with schizophrenia and bipolar disorder but failed to use appropriate mental-health crisis techniques. Illinois State Police reviewed the shooting, and Peoria County prosecutors declined criminal charges against the officers. Johnson brought a federal wrongful-death lawsuit in 2018. In March 2022, the city approved a $415,000 settlement of the family's civil claims. That settlement resolved litigation without itself constituting a criminal conviction or a jury verdict on the use of force.

Investigation & findings

Individual legal and investigative outcome not yet reviewed.

What happened

Investigation & findings

Sources & records