Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy Fired

Garry McCarthy resigned Tuesday morning as superintendent from the Chicago Police Department at the request of Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel.

Garry McCarthy has held the position since 2011, making him the only superintendent that has served under Emanuel, who was re-elected to his second term in April 2015.

Chicago recently released police dashcam video of McDonald’s shooting, sparking days of mostly peaceful protests.

Police have said 25-year-old Ronald Johnson III was fatally shot by an officer on October 12, 2014. The footage was not made public until last week, after a court order.

Mr Van Dyke left jail on Monday on bail.

The firing of McCarthy marks an about-face by Emanuel, who said in recent days he was standing by McCarthy.

Now, a week after the video’s release, the Chicago mayor has fired the police superintendent, created a task force for police accountability and expanded the use of body cameras. The mayor said that while he felt McCarthy had accomplished much, including reducing Chicago’s overall crime rate, his presence at the top of the department had become a “distraction”.

The Task Force on Police Accountability will “recommend reforms to the current system to improve independent oversight of police misconduct, ensure officers with repeated complaints are identified and evaluated appropriately, and establish best practice for release of videos of police-involved incidents”. Former Massachusetts governor and Chicago native Deval Patrick will serve as a senior adviser.

McCarthy rose through the ranks of New York City’s police department and was police director in Newark, New Jersey, when he was hired in Chicago.

The mayor defended the decision to withhold the video from the public until the investigation was finished and the officer charged with murder.

Mr Emanuel appointed the city’s chief of detectives, John Escalante, to oversee the police department until they find a permanent replacement.

Emanuel’s task force, which will include victims’ rights representatives, law enforcement organizations, and youth leaders.

The University of Chicago is set to reopen a day after a 21-year-old man was charged with making an online threat that 16 white men on campus would be killed. Its recommendations will be presented to the mayor and city council by March 31, 2016.

The posting suggested the killings would be in retaliation for the fatal shooting of a black teenager by a white Chicago police officer.

The city has been on tenterhooks amid protests that followed last week’s release of video showing the officer shooting the teen 16 times.