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Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke listens to the October 20, 2014, first-degree murder trial of Laquan McDonald, a 17-year-old black man, at the Leighton Criminal Court on the 17th. September 2018. in Chicago. Opening statements are expected Monday. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune via AP, Pool)
CHICAGO – Prosecutors showed Monday a video of a Chicago white police officer opening fire on Laquan McDonald, dramatically telling the 16 shots fired at the black teen and calling the filming of 2014 " completely useless ".
The video, aired 15 minutes after the preliminary statement of the prosecution in Jason Van Dyke's murder trial, shows the agent who shot McDonald's on October 20, 2014, while the 17-year-old carry a small knife.
"He shot at him not once, not twice, but three, four, five, six, seven, eight – he only half done – nine, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16 times in total, "Special Attorney Joseph McMahon told the jurors, hitting his fingers on a lectern each time he uttered a number.
"Not a single shot was necessary or justified," he said at another point in his opening statement.
But defense attorney, Daniel Herbert, argued that Van Dyke "is not a murderer … He is a frightened policeman who feared for his life and that of others and was acting as he had been trained to do it. "
Herbert also argued that the number of shots fired was irrelevant: "They did not shoot him too often. They charged him with first degree murder. "
Herbert painted a photo of McDonald's as a crazy young man who had attacked a truck driver and a squad car and tried to enter two restaurants. He said McDonald had opened his folding knife when Van Dyke arrived.
McDonald's "planned to attack" again, Herbert said. "He does not try to escape."
He and McMahon both noted that McDonald had the hallucinogenic drug PCP in his system.
But McMahon said Van Dyke did not know it – or something else about McDonald when he opened fire only six seconds after getting out of his car.
"What he saw was a black boy walking down a street with a fence with the audacity to ignore the police," McMahon said.
Herbert took the attorney to the task to elevate the race.
"The government wants you to think it's a racial issue," he told the jury. "The race has absolutely nothing to do with it."
Prosecutors pointed out that Van Dyke was the only officer to shoot with his gun, and the first person to testify was another officer who sued McDonald that night.
Officer Joseph McElligott stated that he was within 4.5 meters of McDonald's, the same distance as Van Dyke when he shot at the teenager. He also stated that McDonald also stabbed the tire of the police car that his partner was driving and hit the window with the knife.
McElligott never fired his weapon, although he did it at some point. He stated that he thought his partner was protected and that someone came with a taser that could be used to control McDonald's.
"We were just trying to be patient," he said.
McElligott was on the street blocking traffic when Van Dyke arrived and, in cross-examination, McElligott said that McDonald's subsequent actions had increased the level of threat.
Van Dyke pleaded not guilty to first degree murder, worsening battery and bad drivers. Prosecutors on Monday dropped four counts of first-degree murder, but Van Dyke still faces two counts of first-degree murder. Some other officers at the scene have been accused of lying about their reports in what prosecutors say is an effort to cover up what happened to protect Van Dyke.
Earlier Monday, Cook County Judge Vincent Gaughan decided not to move the Chicago trial. Defense lawyers have argued that widespread publicity since the publication of the video of the shooting in 2015 makes it impossible to find impartial jurors for a fair trial. But lawyers were able to select a jury in less than a week.
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For the latest information on the lawsuit: https://bit.ly/2NhbikW
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