Illinois Congressman Bobby Rush, the Rev. Attorney General Merrick Garland to also bring federal civil rights charges against Van Dyke. In a letter, NAACP President Derrick Johnson urged U.S. attorney for the region, urging him to file federal civil rights charges against Van Dyke.
On Monday, Calloway and a small group of protesters held a demonstration outside the home of John Lausch, the U.S. "So we have to make sure we hold him accountable."
"He is the epitome of everything that is wrong with police in our country," says Calloway. In Illinois, a sentence for 2nd degree murder is less severe than aggravated battery.Ĭredit for good behavior behind bars allowed years to be shaved off the sentence with Van Dyke leaving prison after serving just over three years. Prosecutors had asked for a prison term of at least 18 years, but Judge Vincent Gaughan sentenced Van Dyke to 81 months, just under seven years, for the sole charge of 2nd degree murder charge. Unlike Chauvin, who was sentenced to 22 and 1/2 years, Van Dyke received a more lenient sentence. A jury found Jason Van Dyke guilty of 2nd degree murder and 16 counts of aggravated battery. In both those cases, video played a crucial role in the officers' convictions. Some high-profile cases, like the murder of George Floyd by former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin and the shooting of Laquan McDonald, are among the exceptions. Most are deemed justified and it's rare for police officers to be prosecuted for police related killings. There are nearly 1,000 fatal police shootings a year. The images contradicted initial police accounts of the shooting. 20, 2014, image made from police dashcam video, Laquan McDonald, 17, right, walks down the street moments before being fatally shot. Van Dyke got out of his car, and within seconds, he shot McDonald 16 times - many of the bullets striking McDonald after he lay crumpled on the ground. Jason Van Dyke and his partner were among the the last officers to arrive. Laquan McDonald had slashed some tires of a truck and was being followed on a southwest side Chicago street by a numbers of police officers waiting for a unit with a Taser.
20, 2014, when a Chicago police responded to reports that a black teenager carrying a knife was breaking into cars. Among the reports findings: Chicago Police routinely used excessive force and violated the rights of people of color. It is a case that roiled the city, caused widespread protests and sparked court mandated police reforms after a blistering report by the U.S. Van Dyke served less than half of his nearly seven-year prison term for the 2014 fatal shooting of Laquan McDonald.
#Chicago gay bar attack police free
Former Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke, left, attends his sentencing hearing in 2019.įormer Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke is a free man.