Laquan McDonald, 17, was shot and killed on October 20, 2014, after encountering Chicago police officers on the southwest side of the city.
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The city has been preparing for protests in advance of the video’s release.
The judge’s ruling, and the prospect of the video’s imminent public release, spurred Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez to charge Van Dyke, who is 37.
The shooting occurred last fall, after McDonald was allegedly seen slashing vehicle tires with a 4-inch knife, according to Chicago police union representatives.
McDonald’s relatives received a $5-million civil settlement from the city, even though they had not filed a lawsuit.
A white Chicago police officer has been charged with murder in the fatal shooting a black teenager. Van Dyke was charged with first degree murder in the killing of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald.
Autopsy results showed McDonald had been hit not once-as initial reports claimed-but sixteen times, in the head, neck, torso, back, arms, groin and legs.
Federal and local investigators have been looking into the case for the past year. The CPD and Mayor Rahm Emanuel have banded together to stop the release of the video to no avail. The Chicago Police Department, however, said it was planning for possible protests regardless.
Though, based on the accounts of those who have seen the video, it seems the only thing that was in jeopardy was Chicago P.D.’s ability to cover up what has been called “an unjustified shooting” that turned into “some kind of sadistic execution”. The charges against Van Dyke were announced on the first anniversary of a Missouri grand jury’s decision not to charge a police officer for shooting and killing an unarmed teenager in Ferguson, Mo. It’s a lesson Baltimore officials should heed as the city embarks on its program to equip police with body cameras.
McDonald’s death at the hands of police using deadly force was one of several fatalities across the United States that led to protests in cities in the past year and a half and reopened a national debate on race relations.
“The Chicago Police Department refuses to look at potential patterns of misconduct complaints when investigating police misconduct”, Futterman said.
Some community leaders said there was no doubt that Alvarez only brought charges because of the order to release the video. “None of the officers observed McDonald attempt to throw his knife at defendant, jump or lunge toward Van Dyke, raise his knife as if to stab defendant, or did anything that was obviously threatening toward defendant beyond what was depicted in the video and not responding to commands while carrying a knife”.
Alvarez said dash cam video of the incident showed police officer Jason Van Dyke was on scene 13 seconds before emptying his gun at the teen, firing 16 rounds.
Detailed data is not available for 2014, but according to the Guardian, 261 black people have been killed by law enforcement officers this year.
A lawyer for Van Dyke has defended his client’s actions, saying the officer felt justified in shooting McDonald because he feared for his safety and that of his fellow officers.
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Emanuel met Monday with activists and community leaders to discuss the coming release and what it might mean for the city.
