Father aquitted of murder after shooting attacker at bus stop

July 17th, 2011 by | Permalink

Elliot Mayfield acquitted of murder. From Chicago Police Department

A judge in Cook County, Illinois ruled that Elliot Mayfield (53), a former drug counselor, acted in self-defense when he fatally shot a man who attacked him and his daughters at a bus stop last year. This acquittal resulted in Mayfield’s release from the prison where he has been since February of 2010.

According to testimony, Mayfield and his two daughters (age 11 and 15) were waiting for a bus when they were approached by an intoxicated man who offered to sell them drugs. The man, Samuel Fullilove (33) became more aggressive, prompting Mayfield to display his gun and warn the man that he would use it.

Surveillance cameras caught Fullilove swinging his fists at Mayfield and chasing him. At one point, one of Mayfield’s daughters became involved in the fight, and that’s when the father shot the assailant in the chest.

Judge Maura Slattery Boyle said “Mr. Mayfield was not the aggressor…Here is this man just trying to get home, and their paths cross and tragedy ensued.”

Mayfield said he prayed for the family of the man he shot, but he was glad he had his gun on him that day.

Source: Chicago Tribune

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  • Jarhead1982

    In jail since Feb 2010?

    Geez, how thoughtful of the prosecuting attorney and the government to lock up an innocent man as guilty, then prove his innocence after putting he and his family in severe if not total financial ruin.

    My hopes are that he sues the state for those damages, or as a result the Castle Doctrine is enacted to prevent such a miscarriage of justice by the Nazi’s in charge in Chicago happening again.

  • Roger Caldwell

    I understand that an arrest had to me made–you can’t just shoot somebody on the street without an investigation. What is astounding to me is that it took 15 months to prove a man innocent when they had two eyewitnesses and video. I know Cook County has a backlog of cases, but this was ridiculous.

  • Jarhead1982

    No, the victim did not have to be put through 15 months of jail and financial ruin on the whim of the prosecuting attorney.

    So I hope he sues the crap out of the POS prosecuting attorney for Cook county for bringing a case to trial that was such a low probability of being successfully prosecuted.

    That is why the review per the Castle Doctrine laws before the pressing of charges would have eliminated both the “penalization” of an innocent person and the cost of a trial to the taxpayers.

    It is time we held prosecuting attorneys to the law rather than their political agendas as attested by Cook County!

  • kajunkkrittter

    what do you expect from a *hithold like Illinoisinvida dowin

  • Eric

    I don’t get it…

    They have such strict laws there. How can it be that it’s not safe to wait for a bus?

  • nicki

    Self Defense is a fundamental human right. The real reason he was persecuted probably had to do with he was carrying a GUN and that is “politically incorrect”.
    Paging Alan Gura, paging Alan Gura, the attorney who overturned the Chicago handgun ban.

  • http://www.cwptrain.com BillOfRights

    An ARREST does NOT have to be made just because a person is forced to use deadly force to save his life or the lives of others. And “investigation” should be done and THEN an arrest made *IF* it is then found that an arrest is warranted. From what little we know of the facts of this case, it appears that NO arrest was warranted. Mr. Mayfield (as well as all of us) should fee free to SUE whomever puts us behind bars without justification.