There is a renewed call for Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel to resign, this time from some firefighters.
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The video, which led to murder charges against Officer Jason Van Dyke, lacked audio.
Aside from Marsh’s misconduct, Chang’s ruling also sanctions-though somewhat less severely-another Law Department attorney, Thomas Aumann, for failing to make a “reasonable” effort to find the recording. Most likely this will amount to hundreds of thousands of dollars before the retrial can take place. “Attorneys who might be tempted to bury late-surfacing information need to know that, if discovered, any verdict they win will be forfeit and their clients will pay the price”. Pinex was shot while trying to drive away.
Pinex and Colyer were driving in Pinex’s Oldsmobile Aurora when they were aggressively pulled over by Mosqueda and Sierra, who approached the vehicle with guns drawn.
It came to light during post-trial investigation that this recording had been known to Marsh before the trial, but he failed to disclose its existence to either the lawyers for the plaintiffs or his own co-counsels on numerous occasions when the matter arose and was discussed.
In a court opinion, Chang said Marsh’s actions determined his decision to overturn the case.
CHICAGO (AP) – Chicago’s law department is examining more than three dozen open cases that were being handled by a former top city attorney who resigned this week after a federal judge accused him of hiding evidence in a fatal police shooting, a department spokesman said Wednesday. It also said it was reviewing its training and evidence-gathering procedures. The mayor said his law department will work to restore the public’s trust.
Marsh does not have a listed phone number and could not be reached for comment.
On Tuesday, Emanuel echoed his “zero tolerance” policy for city employees who do not hold the highest professional standards, “especially an individual representing the city in a courtroom”.
But the Pinex family’s attorney, Steve Greenberg, had a different interpretation of the events.
According to the emails at least one member of Emanuel’s team was attempting to coordinate with the purportedly independent agency that is supposed to investigate police conduct. “I don’t think they cared that (Pinex) got killed, they didn’t care what the truth was and they didn’t care they cheated (with the evidence)”. The city also paid the McDonald family $5 million in hush money to keep the case quiet. But that, the ouster of the police superintendent and Emanuel’s promises of reforms haven’t quieted his critics. There’s nothing to indicate that Emanuel’s job is in immediate trouble, but he has faced numerous protests and plenty of criticism over the police issues.
A new bill would allow voters to recall mayors and other elected officials.
Durbin didn’t talk directly about Emanuel’s handling of the LaQuan McDonald case, but said he’s been in touch with the mayor over the course of the recent controversy.
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The recall law would apply only to future lawmakers, not those now in office.
