Fatal Schiller Park road-rage shooting: Family of victim question decision not to file charges

The last words Francine Johnson heard her son Malachi Johnson say to her were “I’m sorry” and “I love you.”

The two had a disagreement and Malachi Johnson came to make peace with her before he left. Later that day, he was killed in a road-rage incident in Schiller Park.

“I can’t even go into his room," Francine Johnson said. “I look around [and] everything reminds me of him.”

Police say the motorist who fatally shot 19-year-old Malachi Johnson acted in self-defense, though his family is calling for further investigation from authorities.

“It’s bull - - - - and I’m not letting it go,” Francine Johnson, 42, said as her voice trembled. “My son’s name will not be in vain. I need some kind of clarification, some kind of justice for my kid.”

The Cook County state's attorney's office said in a statement that officials could not support criminal charges at this point.

“After a thorough review, we concluded that the totality of the evidence was insufficient to meet our burden of proof to file criminal charges related to this incident," the statement said.

"The Cook County State's Attorney's Office is committed to the work of justice and will file charges when appropriate to do so based on the evidence, facts, and the law," the statement said.

Schiller Park police didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment Friday.

The incident began about 5:30 p.m. Tuesday in the southbound lanes of Interstate 294 as 19-year-old Malachi Johnson and another motorist became embroiled in a dispute that carried over to the 10000 block of Irving Park Road near Scott Street, Schiller Park police said.

While stopped next to each other in traffic, Malachi Johnson exited a Nissan Sentra and approached a Chevrolet Traverse. That’s when both motorists brandished firearms before firing shots, officials said.

Police did not say who fired first.

Malachi Johnson was taken to Lutheran General Hospital in Park Ridge where he was pronounced dead at 6:10 p.m. of a gunshot wound to his chest, according to the Cook County medical examiner's office. His death was ruled a homicide.

Malachi Johnson’s passenger, a woman who relatives identified as his friend, suffered minor wounds and was treated at Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood and released, police said.

Relatives asserted the motorist “bumped” Malachi Johnson from behind while on the tollway and followed him off of the ramp toward the intersection of Irving Park Road and Scott Street where the 19-year-old confronted the motorist.

Though police say there was an exchange of gunfire, Malachi Johnson’s family say his firearm was still in his waistband after the shooting.

“I know my brother did have a weapon on him. I’m not denying it, but his weapon was in his waist when his body was found,” said his older sister, Miracle Johnson. “So how did he shoot first? How is this self-defense?”

An ‘unbreakable’ bond

Malachi Johnson had an “unbreakable” bond with his sister and often went to Alabama to stay with her while she was in college at Alabama A&M University.

“He was one of those people you could count on to tell you the truth,” Miracle Johnson said.

He jokingly wished Miracle Johnson a happy Mother’s Day because he felt she acted like his mother and watched over him, disciplining him sometimes, according to Francine Johnson.

“I was looking forward to growing old with him," Miracle Johnson said.

Malachi Johnson’s family described him as a funny, lighthearted person who usually filled a room with laughter and those he loved with comfort.

"If he were to see us crying right now, he'd be like, 'I'm OK'," Miracle Johnson said.

Malachi Johnson struggled with mental health issues but confided in his older sister who persuaded him to work toward getting his GED and follow in her footsteps by attending college at Alabama A&M University.

Johnson worked at Portillo's for almost a half year to buy his first car — a blue Hyundai Sonata — and got the Nissan with help from his mother last fall to get him to and from a job at Amazon at the time.

When his older sister went to identify his body, "he looked at peace to me, like he almost had a smile on his face,” she said. “What’s been helping me is the fact that he don’t have to struggle no more.”

Malachi Johnson was also anticipating becoming a father of a daughter expected to arrive in December.

“That was my best friend in the whole wide world,” said Miracle Johnson, who turned 25 Friday. “Planning his funeral on my birthday is so unreal to me right now, but I know he’s in a better place.”