Some of the officers who came under criticism in the inspector general’s report have resigned, including a deputy chief, David McNaughton, and another officer.
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The department is disputing that one of the officers should be fired.
Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson has filed administrative charges seeking to fire six officers involved in the fatal shooting of Chicago teenager Laquan McDonald in 2014.
Four other officers are being recommended for dismissal because they reported information about the McDonald shooting that conflicted with what was shown in dashcam video of the incident. On the video, however, Van Dyke can be seen jumping from his auto and opening fire within seconds as McDonald appears to walk away from him.
Footage of the shooting came out in November 2015, more than a year after the incident occurred.
Van Dyke, the officer who shot McDonald, has also been charged with first-degree murder by Cook County prosecutors. He has pleaded not guilty.
Seventeen-year-old McDonald was shot 16 times by Van Dyke in 2014.
The widely distrusted city agency that usually investigates police shootings – the Independent Police Review Authority – referred the inquiry to Ferguson’s office.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s administration worked for months to avoid putting out the video of McDonald’s shooting, but a judge forced its release late past year.
As the scandal deepened, the U.S. Justice Department announced an investigation into whether Chicago police have systematically violated citizens’ rights, and Emanuel has announced a slate of changes created to blunt the impact of reforms federal authorities could seek to enforce.
It also comes amid a string of high-profile killings of black men by police in various USA cities in the past two years which have renewed a national debate about racial discrimination in the American criminal justice system and given rise to the Black Lives Matter movement. “This matter will be now adjudicated before the Chicago Police Board and the Department continues to cooperate with the ongoing criminal investigations into this incident”. These probes often result in court-enforced orders mandating changes at departments. The motion will go through the city’s police board.
Dashcam video of the shooting contradicted almost everything police said happened the night McDonald died.
Even as the embattled police force has made reforms, and city officials have reversed longstanding opposition to releasing videos and reports from investigations into police shootings, Chicago and its police are reeling from a staggering increase in gun violence and bloodshed.
Those four officers include Janet Mondragon, Daphne Sebastian and Ricardo Viramontes and Sgt. Stephen Franko, according to the Trib. Viramontes is accused of lying in his account of what happened.
The Chicago force “is committed to ensuring the highest levels of integrity, accountability and professional standards for all members of the Police Department”, Anthony Guglielmi, a spokesman, said in a statement.
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The charges follow a report from the Inspector General’s office recommending 10 officers in the case that has made national headlines be fired. But the video of McDonald’s shooting directly contradicted the accounts of both Van Dyke and other police on the scene.
