Chicago officer’s fate in jurors’ hands
CHICAGO — Attorneys in the trial of a white Chicago police officer charged with murder in the 2014 shooting of black teenager Laquan McDonald sparred over what video of the deadly encounter actually proves Thursday just before jurors withdrew to begin deliberating.
During closing arguments,, prosecutor Jody Gleason pointed to dashcam video of Officer Jason Van Dyke shooting McDonald 16 times as the teenager held a knife at his side. She noted that Van Dyke told detectives that McDonald raised the knife, that Van Dyke backpedaled, and that McDonald tried to get up off the ground after being shot.
“None of that happened,” she said. “You’ve seen it on video. He made it up.”
But Van Dyke’s attorney, Dan Herbert, said the video, the centerpiece of the prosecutor’s case, doesn’t tell the whole story and is “essentially meaningless based on the testimony” jurors heard. He pointed to testimony from Van Dyke’s partner that night, Joseph Walsh, who said he saw McDonald raise the knife, even though the video doesn’t show that. Van Dyke made similar claims on the witness stand as he told jurors that he was afraid for his life and acted according to his training.
“The video is not enough,” he said. He added: “It shows a perspective, but it’s the wrong perspective.”
Police encountered Laquan McDonald after a 911 call reported someone breaking into vehicles.
As Van Dyke arrived, police had the 17-year-old mostly surrounded on a city street. An officer with a Taser was just 25 seconds away.
Van Dyke is charged with first-degree murder, aggravated battery and official misconduct.
After jurors had deliberated for nearly five hours Thursday, Judge Vincent Gaughan announced that he would be stopping them and sequestering them for the night.
The jury will resume deliberations Friday morning.