Chicago police sergeant acquitted of battery, misconduct for pinning teenage bike theft suspect

SKOKIE, Ill. (AP) — A judge has found a Chicago police sergeant not guilty of aggravated battery and official misconduct in a case in which he pinned down a teenage boy and pressed a knee to his back when he suspected the boy of stealing his son’s bicycle. Local news outlets report the judge acquitted Sgt. Michael Vitellaro on Friday. Vitellaro was off duty at the time of the July 1 altercation in suburban Park Ridge. He said he was using proper technique to take down a suspect in the theft of a bike belonging to his son. The boy was 14 at the time.