A judge increased the bail for a white Chicago police officer charged with murder in the shooting death of black teenager Laquan McDonald after the officer gave a series of media interviews before the start of his trial.
Judge Vincent Gaughan increased the bail by $2,000 in a Thursday hearing. Last week, prosecutors filed a motion that argued Jason Van Dyke should be put in jail or have his bond increased because they said his recent interviews with the media violated a judge's order not to discuss the case publicly.
Van Dyke's attorney, Dan Herbert, has said in a statement that Van Dyke did not violate the judge's order because he did not talk about "evidence" or "the shooting itself."
"When he talked to the press, it wasn't to try to sway the jury," said Defense Attorney Randy Rueckert. "It was just to get out something about him."
Gaughan determined it was a violation of his bail conditions and instead increast the $1.5 million bail by $2,000.
Van Dyke walked out of Cook County Jail Thursday, having paid the $200.
Jury selection began Wednesday. Prospective jurors were summoned to court to fill out questionnaires that attorneys will use to pick a jury.
