Chicago

Jason Van Dyke to Get Sentencing Date This Week

The officer convicted of second-degree murder and 16 counts of aggravated battery in the fatal shooting of Laquan McDonald is expected to learn his sentencing date Wednesday

Chicago police officer Jason Van Dyke is expected to learn his sentencing date this week. 

The officer convicted of second-degree murder and 16 counts of aggravated battery in the fatal shooting of Laquan McDonald is expected to learn his sentencing date Wednesday. 

Earlier this month, Van Dyke was transferred to the Rock Island County Jail in far northwestern Illinois, one of 45 jail detainees who are being kept outside of Cook County.

"Jason Van Dyke was transferred for his safety, and for the stability of the jail compound,” said Cara Smith, policy director for the Cook County Sheriff’s Office. 

The move was for security reasons, not due to any health concerns.

Smith told NBC 5 that detainees from the jail will usually be transferred for one of three reasons:  they have assaulted a member of the jail staff, they are cooperating with prosecutors on a pending case, or they are a high-profile defendant for whom more security is deemed appropriate.

Van Dyke falls into that third category.


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