CHICAGO, April 8 (UPI) -- An off-duty Chicago police officer shot and killed two men who allegedly aimed guns at him shortly after he had helped throw one man out of a bar.
The officer was drinking early Friday in the same bar as Kenneth Elrod, 31, when staff asked him to help them get Elrod to leave at closing time.
The officer, whose name was not disclosed, said Elrod's Ford Ranger later pulled up next to his Hummer at a stop. Police said Elrod and another man, Demetri Centera, 31, pointed guns at the officer, and he shot and killed both men, whose guns were never fired, the Chicago Tribune reported.
The Chicago Police Department convened a "roundtable" of law enforcement officials to review the incident, clearing the officer of any wrongdoing.
Both Elrod and Centera had numerous arrests, and Elrod had a 1994 felony conviction for drug dealing. Though police described the two men as criminals and gang members, Elrod's family said he was a loving father of two small children who worked as a plumber.
Linda Morales, whose sister Maria married Elrod four years ago, said she was unaware of any gang involvement.
