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Murder of Laquan McDonald

2010s in Chicago2014 in Illinois2014 murders in the United States2015 in IllinoisAfrican-American-related controversies
Black Lives MatterChicago Police DepartmentFilmed killings by law enforcementIncidents of violence against boysMurder in ChicagoMurders by law enforcement officers in the United StatesOctober 2014 crimes in the United StatesOctober 2014 events in the United StatesPeople shot dead by law enforcement officers in the United StatesPolice brutality in the United StatesProtests in the United StatesUse mdy dates from November 2020

The murder of Laquan McDonald took place on October 20, 2014, in Chicago, Illinois. McDonald was a 17-year-old African American youth who was fatally shot by a white Chicago Police Officer, Jason Van Dyke. Police had initially reported that McDonald was behaving erratically while walking down the street, refusing to put down a knife, and that he had lunged at officers. Preliminary internal police reports described the incident similarly, leading to the shooting being judged as justifiable, and Van Dyke not being charged at the time. This was later disproven after the video of the murder was released, showing that McDonald was walking away. On November 24, 2015, thirteen months after the shooting, a court ordered the police to release a dash cam video of the shooting. It showed that McDonald was walking away from the police when he was shot 16 times by Officer Van Dyke. That same day, Van Dyke was charged with first-degree murder, and was initially held without bail at the Cook County Jail. He was released on bail on November 30. The city reached a settlement with McDonald's family for $5 million in April 2015. On October 5, 2018, Van Dyke was found guilty of second-degree murder, as well as 16 counts of aggravated battery with a firearm.Protests followed the murder of McDonald, demanding changes in police and judicial procedure, and for the dismissal or resignation of city and county officials. Rahm Emanuel won a second term in 2015 as Mayor of Chicago (prior to the release of the dash cam video), but Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez lost her bid for reelection in 2016. At the request of Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan, the United States Department of Justice initiated a civil rights investigation into McDonald's murder and the activities of the Chicago Police Department. It released its report in January 2017, describing the police as having a culture of "excessive violence", especially against minority suspects, and of having poor training and supervision. DOJ and city officials signed a consent decree for a plan for improvement to be overseen by the courts. Moreover, three Chicago police officers were tried for allegedly attempting to cover up events related to the murder, and were found not guilty by the Cook County Circuit Court on January 17, 2019.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Murder of Laquan McDonald (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors).

Murder of Laquan McDonald
South Pulaski Road, Chicago Archer Heights

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N 41.817972222222 ° E -87.724 °
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South Pulaski Road

South Pulaski Road
60652 Chicago, Archer Heights
Illinois, United States
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