Chicago Police
CHICAGO — A Cook County jury won’t force the city of Chicago pay millions of dollars to the family of a woman who was killed in a crash caused by a carjacker fleeing police, instead laying full blame for the woman’s death at the feet of the criminal.
The jury handed down the verdict on Oct. 9 in Cook County Circuit Court, in the lawsuit lodged by plaintiff Marylyn Rogel, on behalf of Dominga Flores Gomez.
Gomez, 55, died in September 2022 of injuries she suffered after her vehicle was struck by a stolen Honda HR-V driven by Juan C. Vazquez in the intersection of South Kedzie and 31st Street in Chicago’s Little Village neighborhood.
According to court documents, Vazquez was fleeing police at about 8:45 p.m. on Sept. 28, about two hours after he had stolen the car.
According to court documents, police started following Vazquez in the stolen car near 33rd Street and Bell Avenue. In all, the pursuit lasted about 9 minutes, but covered nearly 11 miles, as Vazquez weaved in and out of traffic and ran red lights at speeds between 60 and 100 mph, before slamming into the vehicle driven by Gomez.
Vazquez survived the collision and was charged with first degree murder and other crimes related to Gomez’s death. He was ultimately convicted of reckless homicide and sentenced to 14 years in prison.
Following her death, Gomez’s family filed suit in Cook County court against the city, claiming the officers who pursued Vazquez violated city police pursuit policies and bore the blame for her death.
Gomez’s family is represented in the case by attorneys from the firm of Power Rogers, of Chicago.
In the lawsuit, they claim police had an obligation to end pursuit and allow Vazquez to escape, because chasing him would be too dangerous to bystanders.
The lawsuit is but one of many the city has faced in recent years related to police chases that ended in a crash in which someone has died.
Those lawsuits have proven costly for the city and lucrative for plaintiffs and their lawyers. According to a report published by WTTW, the city has paid out nearly $188 million in settlements or judgments in such cases since 2019, and over $103 million since early 2025.
Most recently, the Illinois Supreme Court left the city no choice but to pay $10.5 million to the family of a man who was killed by a criminal fleeing police in 2018, rejecting the city’s appeal of a 2023 Cook County jury verdict.
However, the mounting costs of those payouts has triggered pushback from some Chicago aldermen, who say the city’s increasing policy of quickly settling lawsuits lodged over alleged police misconduct has not only encouraged more lawsuits, but also encouraged criminals to flout police.
These aldermen have instead urged Mayor Brandon Johnson and city lawyers to force more police-related lawsuits to trial to allow police officers and the city to defend itself and potentially prevent payouts in cases in which they believe criminals are to blame for the harm done and lives lost.
In the Gomez case, the city council Finance Committee surprised many by specifically rejecting city lawyers’ recommendation to pay $8.25 million to settle the matter before trial.
City lawyers had urged the deal because they said they feared a jury would order the city to pay many millions of dollars more.
Instead, at trial, the jury backed the city’s contention that Vazquez’s criminal actions and recklessness were entirely to blame for Gomez’s death.
Following the trial, Ald. Raymond Lopez hailed the verdict. In a post on social media platform X, Lopez said: “A jury saw what we saw: criminals, not Chicago taxpayers, are the problem!“
Attorneys for the Gomez family have not yet indicated if they will seek to overturn the verdict.
