Nov. 22--The expected release this week of a controversial video showing a white Chicago police officer fatally shooting an African-American teen will cast a spotlight on Chicago amid a raging national debate on police use of lethal force against minorities.
The police dashboard-cam video, expected to be released no later than Wednesday, allegedly captured the officer firing 16 rounds into Laquan McDonald, 17, many as he lay prone along a stretch of Pulaski Road in the Archer Heights neighborhood.
The city had opposed the release of the potentially inflammatory video, citing ongoing criminal investigations of Officer Jason Van Dyke, but it dropped its opposition after a Cook County judge last week ordered that the video be made public by Wednesday.
Torreya Hamilton, a civil rights lawyer who has sued the Chicago Police Department, said the city's efforts to fight the video release reflect a persistent problem with transparency in contrast with some other major cities.
"Most officers deserve to wear the badge, but for some reason we fail to hold accountable those who don't," she said. "That is a system problem."
Not all police departments fight the release of controversial video recordings.
In July, the Texas Department of Public Safety released dash-cam video weeks after a Naperville woman, Sandra Bland, was involved in a controversial traffic stop. Authorities ruled she committed suicide in jail.
