Video released showing officer-involved shooting of black teen in Chicago
The city of Chicago released dashboard camera footage Tuesday evening that shows the fatal shooting of a 17-year-old black teenager in October 2014.
The video is six minutes long, and appears to show Laquan McDonald walking down the middle of a street before he is shot. Jason Van Dyke, the officer who allegedly shot McDonald, was charged with first-degree murder Tuesday; prosecutors say he fired 16 rounds at McDonald in roughly 14 seconds, and was reloading when another officer told him to hold his fire, the Chicago Tribune reports.
A court ordered the release of the video after a freelance journalist filed a Freedom of Information Act request, going against the wishes of McDonald's family. "No one understands the anger more than us, but if you choose to speak out, we urge you to be peaceful," the family said in a statement. "Don't resort to violence in Laquan's name. Let his legacy be better than that." Before the video was posted, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy held a news conference, urging residents to remain calm. "The officer in this case took a young man's life, and he's going to have to account for his actions," McCarthy said. "People have a right to be angry, people have a right to protest. " While he did not predict "doom and gloom," he did say he believed the tape would spark protests. The graphic video can be viewed on the Chicago Tribune website.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Catherine Garcia is night editor for TheWeek.com. Her writing and reporting has appeared in Entertainment Weekly and EW.com, The New York Times, The Book of Jezebel, and other publications. A Southern California native, Catherine is a graduate of the University of Redlands and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism.
-
Why are people and elephants fighting in Sri Lanka?
Under The Radar Farmers encroaching into elephant habitats has led to deaths on both sides
By Chas Newkey-Burden, The Week UK Published
-
Indie film's 'very brief' use of AI sparks backlash and calls for boycotts
Talking Points Did the creators of a new horror movie make a deal with the artificial intelligence devil?
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Could Taylor Swift swing the election?
Today's Big Question The pop star has outsized influence — and that extends beyond the music industry
By Anya Jaremko-Greenwold Published
-
'Goon Squad' cops sentenced for torturing 2 Black men
Speed Read The former Mississippi law enforcement officers pleaded guilty last year
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Michigan shooter's dad guilty of manslaughter
speed read James Crumbley failed to prevent his son from killing four students at Oxford High School in 2021
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Shooting at Chiefs victory rally kills 1, injures 21
Speed Read Gunfire broke out at the Kansas City Chiefs' Super Bowl victory parade in Missouri
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Court rules Josef Fritzl can be moved to normal prison
Speed Read 'Notorious' criminal, now 88, was convicted for raping, committing incest and imprisoning his daughter
By Richard Windsor, The Week UK Published
-
Post Office scandal casts new light on Robin Garbutt murder conviction
Speed Read Supporters claim faulty Horizon evidence was key to guilty verdict but victim's mother accuses former postmaster of jumping on bandwagon
By The Week UK Published
-
Uvalde parents want indictments after DOJ's scathing school shooting report
Speed Read The Justice Department's damning review of the May 2022 school shooting in Texas details 'cascading failures,' but families of the victims want justice
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Girls left 'at the mercy' of Rochdale sex abuse gangs, says 'damning' review
Speed Read Victims 'badly failed' by council and police, said Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
Prague shooting: student kills 14 people at university
Speed reads Police believe suspect, who killed himself, may have shot his father before carrying out mass murder
By Arion McNicoll, The Week UK Published