MAN CONVICTED OF TRYING TO KILL COP IN SOUTH SIDE SHOOTING

A jury Monday night convicted Anthony Smith of the attempted murder of
Chicago police officer Fernando Carvajal, rejecting Smith's claim that
Carvajal shot him in the back as he fled, unarmed, down an alley near
74th Place and Phillips Avenue on July 8, 1996.

Carvajal, a 6-year veteran, had claimed he shot Smith, now 20, in the
chest after the defendant turned toward him in the alley and fired a
shot that narrowly missed him. The officer was not injured.

Prosecutors celebrated with Carvajal and a group of supporters after
the jury delivered its verdict to Judge James Egan after less than
three hours of deliberation. At the same time, members of Smith's
family cried out in pain, as he turned to them and mouthed the words,
"Don't cry," before being led away by bailiffs.

Carvajal declined to speak with reporters.

The five-day trial centered on disputed testimony regarding the wounds
made by Carvajal's bullet in Smith's back and chest.

During closing arguments at the Cook County Criminal Courts Building,
Smith stripped to his waist at the behest of defense attorney James
Cutrone and leaned toward the panel as the lawyer pointed out what the
defense contended was the scar from an exit wound in his chest.

Because the bullet fired by the officer passed through Smith's body,
each side had called "expert" witnesses to bolster their claims about
where the bullet entered.

Cutrone and co-counsel Sam Adam denied Smith had a gun when he ran
away from Carvajal and was shot in the back, contending their client
was being prosecuted to protect a police officer who made a mistake.

But investigators said they recovered a 9 mm firearm at the scene, and
Carvajal said the defendant fled as he tried to question him after
spotting him with a gun near 74th Place and Phillips Avenue.

Prosecutors Anita Alvarez and James Sarros said Smith turned as he ran
down an alley and fired at Carvajal before being wounded by the
officer. He was arrested after being found hiding behind a nearby
structure. No fingerprints were found on the gun police found at the
scene.

Smith said he ran that night only because he had a $10 bag of
marijuana, while prosecutors said no drugs were found on him or among
his belongings when he was transported to Cook County Hospital for
treatment.

Retired Deputy Cook County Medical Examiner Robert Kirschner testified
for the defense that the entry wound from Carvajal's bullet only could
have been made in Smith's back, but prosecutors called Dr. John
Barrett, Cook County Hospital's director of trauma services, who said
it was not possible to determine where the bullet entered Smith's body
based on a physical examination alone.

"Neither I nor a forensic pathologist can make any determinations as
to what the original characteristics of the wound were," Barrett
testified. "The characteristics of a healed wound do not correspond
with any specificity . . . certainly not enough to determine entrances
and exits. It can't be done."

Smith also was convicted of aggravated discharge of a firearm. A
sentencing hearing is scheduled for Nov. 23. He faces a minimum
20-year sentence on the attempted-murder charge and as much as 10
years on the weapons violation.

Checked-by: Patrick Henry