CHICAGO (AP) – City officials released hundreds of emails Thursday related to a police video that was kept secret for more than a year after a white Chicago officer shot a black teenager 16 times.
The emails, including some messages in which officials asked how they should respond to demands for the footage, were released to media outlets that have been pressing for the documents for weeks.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Chicago police have been under heavy scrutiny since the city, under court order, released the squad-car video last month showing officer Jason Van Dyke shooting 17-year-old Laquan McDonald in October 2014. McDonald, who was carrying a folded 3-inch knife, is seen veering away from Van Dyke in the video before the officer starts firing.
Van Dyke, who has been charged with first-degree murder, has pleaded not guilty to the charges.
The release of the video set off weeks of demonstrations and forced the resignation of Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy. It also led to an ongoing civil rights investigation of the entire Chicago Police Department by the U.S. Department of Justice. Protesters have called for Emanuel to resign.