Police: Palos Park Man Tased After Oak Lawn Bar Brawl

A larger than normal crowd gathered outside an Oak Lawn tavern drew the attention of police who discovered a fight in progress on April 6.

Three men were arrested on various battery counts and resisting arrest when one of them led an officer on a foot chase through the parking lot of Bar Code 99 at 9906 Southwest Highway. All three men sustained injuries from the fight, reports said.

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Police said that the patrol was driving into the tavern’s parking lot after noticing the crowd around 1:25 a.m. when a bystander flagged him down and said, “Yo, there’s a guy down.”

The officer did not find anyone on the ground, but said a man identified as of 123 Prarieview Drive, in Palos Park, was screaming on the sidewalk that someone had punched his girlfriend.

As the cop told the man to calm down, reports said he slapped the officer’s hand away. The officer instructed Mitsis to place his hands behind his back when the man ran into the parking lot. Police said the officer chased Mitsis and was eventually able to grab him, at which point Mitsis started to struggle.

Mitsis allegedly threw a punch that grazed the officer’s chin, causing the officer to withdraw his Taser, reports said. After telling Mitsis to put his hands behind his back, he complied but turned around to see the officer to lower his Taser.

Police said that Mitsis broke away from the officer and began ran toward Southwest Highway between two cars. After numerous warnings, the officer shot Mitsis in the back with the Taser. He was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center for treatment.

An employee with a large cut over his eye told the officer that he had a verbal altercation with Mitsis, his brother Matthew Mitsis, 21, also of Palos Park, and their friend, Michael Jared Ennis, 20, of the 8100 block of West 90th Street in Hickory Hills, reports said.

The employee told the bouncer not to let three into the bar. As the employee walked back inside the bar, he and John exchanged words. Police said the employee went back outside with bouncer when they saw the three men fighting.

According to the report, the men knocked the employee down and began punching and kicking him, resulting in the cut over the eye.

Matthew Mitsis and Ennis were both arrested and taken to the Oak Lawn police station.

Police said Ennis told them he had been at his girlfriend’s house when the Mitsis brothers invited him to the bar. He said he arrived five minutes after the fight started and saw Matthew get punched in the head.

John and Matthew Mitsus said all three had been drinking at another bar when they were kicked out and headed over to 99 Bar Code. The brothers claimed they couldn’t remember exactly what happened, only that Matthew had gotten hit at some point, police said.

Ennis and Matthew Mitsis were also taken to Advocate Christ, where Ennis was treated for a broken hand and Matthew for a bruised jaw.

Matthew Mitsis and Ennis were charged with battery. Their next court appearance is May 2.

John Mitsis was charged with one felony count of battery and resisting arrest.

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