You can see him turning toward the police at close quarters with a knife. He was also on PCP apparently. Now whether that necessitated shooting him after he was already on the ground is another question, but juries often give cops latitude of the ‘heat of the moment’. Murder seems a questionable charge here though, given the situation.
This also should not have been released as it now likely taints the jury pool.
Via Daily Mail:
The chilling dashcam footage showing a white cop shooting dead a black teenager has been made public despite attempts by both the police and Chicago city officials to block its release.
The shocking video shows as Officer Jason Van Dyke shoots 17-year-old Laquan McDonald 16 times, and for 13 seconds as the motionless young man lays on the ground at point blank range.
At one point, smoke can be seen coming from the teenager’s back as shots are fired.
Van Dyke has been charged with first-degree murder and Mayor Rahm Emanuel and members of the police department have urged for peaceful protest in the wake of the release of this horrifying footage.
After the death of McDonald on October 20, 2014, van Dyke claimed he had felt threatened by the teenager.