Family of Slain Teen Calling for White House Summit

“And regardless of the findings in this investigation, we will seek to work with local officials, residents, and law enforcement officers alike to ensure that the people of Chicago have the world-class police department they deserve”. “That represents a failure of government and everybody loses in a situation like that”, Carson added.

Republican presidential contender Ben Carson on Thursday called the Chicago police shooting of Laquan McDonald “despicable” but stopped short of saying Mayor Rahm Emanuel should resign.

The federal judge said he’d decide January 14 whether to order the city to release the footage. Neslund says he wondered for months why no charges had been filed, but that he knew the investigation was ongoing because witnesses were testifying before a grand jury.

Nevertheless, the candidate expressed skepticism that a federal Department of Justice investigation into the patterns and practices of the Chicago Police Department would lead to change.

Suspicion about reforms initiated by City Hall runs deep in Chicago, especially among blacks, who have heard similar pledges every couple of years, whenever allegations of police brutality arose.

It includes several figures associated with existing accountability bodies, including Lori Lightfoot, a former assistant US attorney who heads the Chicago Police Board, which is responsible for disciplining officers.

Whether Emanuel steps down or not, Chicago politicians face the tough task of addressing the concerns of constituents who are increasingly disappointed by the windy city’s politicians.

Protests continued in Chicago on Thursday starting with a “die-in” by medical students, a day after embattled Mayor Rahm Emanuel emotionally apologized for the 2014 police shooting of a 17-year-old black teen. Instead, the messages “show the City Hall press office was made aware of the possibility of video of the Laquan McDonald shooting on December 8, 2014”, the station reports. The 16 minutes symbolized the 16 shots fired at McDonald.

Carson called the controversy over the McDonald killing a national issue, but said that, since he is not from Chicago he would not weigh in on Mayor Emanuel’s political future. “The people are not going to accept the explanation without a relationship”, said Brown, who is now executive director of the Cook County Department of Homeland Security and Emergency Management. He was carrying a knife, but in the video of the confrontation he is seen moving away from officers and posing no obvious threat. Van Dyke was charged with first-degree murder just hours before the footage was released.

Dash cam video of the incident was not released until 13 months later.

“Having a 20-year reign of terror in the African-American community affected not only the men, but their families and the entire community”, said attorney Flint Taylor, who helped exonerate numerous victims.