One week after a video was released in Chicago showing a deadly police-involved shooting, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel said the city will end its opposition to releasing dashboard video of another young man who also appeared to have been shot dead by police. Emanuel, who had previously declined to release the video, said he would make public the dashcam footage of 25-year-old Ronald Johnson’s death next week.
Advertisement
Surveillance video from a Burger King near where McDonald was killed has a mysterious 80-minute gap covering the time when McDonald was shot by Officer Jason Van Dyke on a nearby street.
When public officials refuse to release a video that shows alleged misconduct by a police officer, expect the worst. Only Van Dyke fires his weapon and none of the estimated seven police officers on the scene moves to help McDonald.
Darshane and many protesters have said they believe police purposely erased the video in question. Van Dyke has been charged with first-degree murder.
The Chicago Police Department said the Independent Police Review Authority is conducting the investigation into McDonald’s killing.
Johnson’s family has been pushing for the release of the video for 14 months, Oppenheimer tells ABC News, calling Emanuel’s decision “the first step for justice”.
For years, Chicago has consistently fought – hard – in the courts, saying the release of videos would jeopardize active investigations.
– Charleston, South Carolina: In April, a bystander’s cellphone video prompted police in North Charleston, South Carolina, to release a dashcam video of white officer Michael Slager shooting Walter Scott, an unarmed black man. Slager has been charged with murder and is awaiting a trial date.
Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez’s office will investigate the possibility of criminal charges against the officer, her office said Wednesday. Van Dyke also referred to a Chicago Police Department bulletin warning officers of a knife capable of firing a bullet.
But experts and city police have concluded the video is bogus.
A representative for Emanuel did not immediately respond to ABC News’ request for comment today regarding the Johnson video. The video, which Oppenheimer said he has seen many times, shows that within two seconds of getting out of his auto, Hernandez fired five times at Johnson as he was still running away, striking him in the back of the knee and again in the back of the shoulder. The teen “continued to advance” towards him, contradicting what the video shows: McDonald walking away from police vehicles, crossing at least one lane of Pulaski. Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan has called for an overall federal probe of police department practices, which Democratic presidential candidates to local Illinois politicians have echoed.
Advertisement
The release of the footage triggered protests and calls for public officials, including Mayor Rahm Emanuel, to resign.
