Newly released emails reveal coordination after teen’s death

Both were black, and news of their deaths reignited the protests that have erupted throughout the city since the release last month of a video showing police shooting another black teenager, Laquan McDonald, 16 times in November 2014. Chicago officials released hundreds of emails Thursday Dec. 31, 2015 related to the video that wasn’t released until more than a year after the shooting.

U.S. Rep Danny Davis (D-Illinois) said police should have respect for the human dignity of every person they encounter.

As details about the LeGrier shooting emerged, Emanuel said there were “serious questions” about what happened and ordered changes in how city police officers are trained to handle calls involving people who may have mental health problems. Van Dyke, however, pleaded not guilty at a court on Tuesday.

“The term ‘Black Lives Matter, ‘ yes we agree that all lives matter, but we want black lives to matter just as much, and in the same way that all lives matter”, he said.

The city’s release of the video last month, following a judicial order, touched off nationwide protests against unjustified police shootings and revealed how much official accounts of the circumstances that led to McDonald’s death differed from actual events. He also said there would be changes to officer training.

Mr Emanuel was asked at the press conference why he is acting only now to de-escalate tensions between the community and police. McDonald, who was carrying a folded 3-inch knife, is seen veering away from officer Jason Van Dyke in the video before the officer starts firing. The Chicago Police Department, already the subject of a federal civil rights investigation over its use of deadly force and other issues, has admitted the woman’s death was an accident.

Emanuel cut short a vacation in Cuba this week to return to the Windy City where he announced another round of police reforms. Quintonio LeGrier was also killed in the shooting after allegedly threatening his father with a metal baseball bat.

The announced reforms come on the heels of the police killings of two other African American residents of Chicago last Saturday, including a mother of five.

The city’s main police oversight agency, the Independent Police Review Authority, is investigating the weekend shooting.

Lauren Chooljian, with NPR member station WBEZ in Chicago, reported that Escalante said front-line officers, who respond to the majority of calls, would receive the crisis training first.

About 1,860 officers, or roughly 15 percent of Chicago’s officers, have completed the training, according to department statistics.

“Emanuel was asked why he didn’t make such changes in the previous four-plus years in office”.

Ald. Emma Mitts (37th) said there needs to be a cultural shift in the Police Department, starting with understanding black culture. He noted that on audio recordings of communications between dispatchers and officers on the scene, several are heard “frantically” asking for a Taser before the shooting.