The opinion last week found that the Chicago Police Department improperly failed to search 12 officers’ personal email accounts in response to an inquiry from CNN about the October 2014 police shooting of McDonald.
Advertisement
A Chicago Police official who signed off on the report initially clearing Officer Jason Van Dyke in the shooting death of Laquan McDonald, retired abruptly Monday, a police department spokesman confirmed.
The other departing leader, First Deputy Superintendent John Escalante, served as interim superintendent during the upheaval after the video’s release.
“Today, after almost 25 years of service helping the people of Chicago, Deputy Chief David McNaughton has announced his intentions to retire from the Chicago Police Department”, Superintendent Eddie Johnson said in a prepared statement. At the time, the department said Van Dyke shot McDonald in fear of his life, after the teen lunged at officers with a knife. He is leaving to become police chief at Northeastern Illinois University.
The CPD’s announcement about McNaughton’s retirement doesn’t mention the McDonald case. McCarthy’s dismissal came shortly after the release of the McDonald video.
Northeastern Illinois University President Sharon Hahs said in a statement that Escalante “has a national reputation in the field of law enforcement for his experience, integrity and leadership”.
Anthony Guglielmi, spokesman for the Chicago Police Department, confirmed to NBC 5 a report was being reviewed by the department. He says he does not know how long the review will take.
Advertisement
Meantime, Police Supt. Eddie Johnson continues to analyze Chicago Inspector General Joseph Ferguson’s report on the McDonald investigation.
