CHICAGO (AP) – A charge of murder is expected to be filed against a white Chicago police officer accused of shooting a black teenager 16 times, just a day ahead of a deadline by which a judge has ordered the city to release a squad-car video of the incident.
Veteran officer Jason Van Dyke is expected to be indicted Tuesday on a murder charge in the killing of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald, an official close to the investigation told The Associated Press. The official spoke on condition of anonymity so as not to pre-empt an announcement of the charges.
City officials and community leaders have been bracing for the release of the video, fearing an outbreak of unrest and demonstrations similar to what occurred in Baltimore, Ferguson, Missouri and other cities after young African American men were slain by police. The judge ordered the dash-cam recording to be released by Wednesday after city officials had argued for months it couldn’t be made public until the conclusion of several investigations.
Several people who have seen the video say it shows the teenager armed with a small knife and walking away from several officers on Oct. 20, 2014. They say Van Dyke opened fire from about 15 feet and kept shooting after the teen fell to the ground. An autopsy report says McDonald was shot at least twice in his back. It also said PCP, a hallucinogenic drug, was found in the teen’s system.
An attorney for Van Dyke did not respond to messages from the AP seeking comment.