Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson said Wednesday evening that Chicago police have detained four people — two men and two women — on suspicion of kidnapping and assaulting a mentally disabled 18-year-old, an attack that was broadcast via Facebook Live. Police say they expect to file charges within 24 hours, and did not disclose the race of the suspects, but on the video, since taken down by Facebook, people in the room can be heard using profanity against "white people" and President-elect Donald Trump. The victim, who appears to be white, was found wandering around the West Side of Chicago in shorts on Tuesday evening, and Chicago Police Cmdr. Kevin Duffin says the man was "traumatized" by the kidnapping and assault but has been treated and released from the hospital.
The 30-minute video shows a black woman laughing and other people cutting the shirt off a man with his mouth taped shut, pushing his head back with a foot, and slicing off some of his hair and drawing blood, among other things. There are alcohol bottles in the room. Duffin said police are considering classifying it a hate crime, but are still determining if the language in the video "is sincere or just stupid ranting and raving."
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.
-
'Without mandatory testing, bird flu will continue circulating at farms across the country'Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
-
Thirteen missing after Red Sea tourist boat sinksSpeed Read The vessel sank near the Egyptian coastal town of Marsa Alam
-
Khan supporters converge on IslamabadSpeed Read Protesters clashing with Pakistani authorities are demanding the release of jailed former prime minister Imran Khan
-
Judge blocks Louisiana 10 Commandments lawSpeed Read U.S. District Judge John deGravelles ruled that a law ordering schools to display the Ten Commandments in classrooms was unconstitutional
-
Swearing in the UK: a colourful historyIn The Spotlight Thanet council's bad language ban is the latest chapter in a saga of obscenity
-
ATF finalizes rule to close 'gun show loophole'Speed Read Biden moves to expand background checks for gun buyers
-
Hong Kong passes tough new security lawSpeed Read It will allow the government to further suppress all forms of dissent
-
France enshrines abortion rights in constitutionspeed read It became the first country to make abortion a constitutional right
-
Texas executes man despite contested evidenceSpeed Read Texas rejected calls for a rehearing of Ivan Cantu's case amid recanted testimony and allegations of suppressed exculpatory evidence
-
Supreme Court wary of state social media regulationsSpeed Read A majority of justices appeared skeptical that Texas and Florida were lawfully protecting the free speech rights of users
-
Greece legalizes same-sex marriageSpeed Read Greece becomes the first Orthodox Christian country to enshrine marriage equality in law
