Chicago officer who shot black teen to plead not guilty

Van Dyke has been charged with murder and is now awaiting trial.

The police department has been under scrutiny since a dashcam video was released last month showing a white officer shooting a black 17-year-old 16 times.

Van Dyke’s case was assigned to Cook County Circuit Judge Vincent Gaughan. He said he also changed a rule earlier this week that puts officers involved in a shooting on desk duty for 30 days while the incident is reviewed.

Van Dyke, who faces six first-degree murder counts, pleaded not guilty to the charges Tuesday.

Police vehicle video, released in November, shows Van Dyke shooting the teen as he walked away from police.

An aide to Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel was punched, kicked and tackled by a pair of assailants on Sunday night during a vigil for two people who had been shot and killed by police.

Herbert, the lawyer for Van Dyke, said policy changes in the Chicago Police Department, which Emanuel’s office has hinted at and may include more education, would be beneficial.

In the case of the 2014 shooting of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald – captured on a video that has since unleashed a maelstrom of protest – there were several cars on the scene, but no one had a Taser.

A federal investigation has been launched into the Chicago Police Department’s practices.

“He is cutting his family trip short so that he can continue the ongoing work of restoring accountability and trust in the Chicago Police Department”, Stephen Spector, another spokesman for the mayor, said in an email.

He said the goal is for police in the field to establish “time and distance to allow for more prudent thinking, and physical space to promote a safer environment”.

The Chicago police officer charged in the fatal shooting death of Laquan McDonald pleaded not guilty to all charges Tuesday.

Every Chicago police officer will be trained to use and equipped with a stun gun by June 2016, according to the City of Chicago.

“This afternoon I directed the new acting chief administrator of the Independent Police Review Authority and the interim Superintendent of Police to meet with each other as soon as possible to review the crisis intervention team training, around how officers respond to mental health crisis calls”, the Mayor continued.

And many question the shooting of LeGrier, who police say was combative.

Police shot Quintonio LeGrier, 19, a male college student who was visiting his father, and Bettie Jones, a 55-year-old mother of five, on Saturday.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel (D) on Sunday ordered better police training in dealing with mentally ill people.

“Anytime an officer uses force the public deserves answers, and regardless of the circumstances, we all grieve anytime there is a loss of life in our city”, Emanuel said in the statement.

Misconduct “will not be tolerated” – because when it is, it undermines all the good officers out there, Emanuel said.

Prosecutors in Cleveland, Ohio, drew criticism yesterday (Dec. 28) following a grand jury’s decision to not press charges against police officer Timothy Loehmann, who killed a 12 year-old boy last year after mistaking the boy’s toy pistol for a real weapon.