A white Chicago policeman who killed a black teenager was charged with murder on Tuesday, hours before authorities released a long-awaited video that shows the youth walking away from officers as he is shot 16 times.
The graphic footage of last year’s shooting, taken from a camera mounted on the dashboard of a police car and made public under orders from a judge, sparked mostly peaceful street demonstrations in Chicago on Tuesday.
The clip showed 17-year-old Laquan McDonald, who authorities said was carrying a pocket knife and had the hallucinogenic drug PCP in his system, as he was gunned down in the middle of a street on October 20th, 2014.
McDonald is seen jogging away from patrol vehicles pursuing him from behind, and then veering off diagonally at a walk as two more officers pull up in a squad car ahead of him.
Two policemen are shown jumping out of their vehicle in the center of the road, and drawing their weapons while advancing toward McDonald, who continues to move away. Within seconds he is struck by bullets, spins and crumples to the ground, his body jerking as he is hit by additional rounds of gunfire.
Cook County's chief prosecutor, Anita Alvarez, acknowledged that she timed the filing of the first-degree murder charge against officer Jason Van Dyke to precede the video's disclosure in a bid to mute harsh public reaction to the footage.
“With release of this video it’s really important for public safety that the citizens of Chicago know that this officer is being held responsible for his actions,” she said.
Van Dyke became the first Chicago police officer charged with murder for an on-duty incident in decades.
The video originally was expected to be released a day later, in compliance with the Wednesday deadline set by a judge. However, police said they made the clip public Tuesday evening after it was leaked to a local television station. Technical issues were blamed for a lack of audio with the tape.
Authorities, including Mayor Rahm Emanuel, appealed for calm as the city hoped to avert the turmoil over race and the use of lethal police force that has shaken much of the United States for more than a year.
Hundreds of protesters gathered after dark a few miles east of the site of the shooting. They marched through the streets chanting: “You don’t get to kill us and tell us how to feel. You don’t get to shoot us and tell us how to heal.”
Police said two protesters were arrested after a scuffle on Michigan Avenue.
It’s a good start that they have charged the police officer, but we’ve clearly reached the point where something needs to change,” said protester Monique Winegard (33).
The video, and prosecutors’ account of the shooting, contradicted assertions by Van Dyke’s lawyers and the police union that the shooting was justified because Van Dyke felt threatened by the youth.
Prosecutors said Van Dyke fired the shots within 30 seconds of arriving at the scene, and just six seconds after emerging from his patrol car, emptying his gun at McDonald and preparing to reload. McDonald was hit by 16 rounds, all from Van Dyke’s weapon.
“Clearly, this officer went overboard and he abused his authority, and I don’t think use of force was necessary,” prosecutor Ms Alvarez said at a news conference after Van Dyke’s initial hearing.
Reuters