Chicago Police have released the complete 395-page police report documenting the fatal shooting of Laquan McDonald on Oct. 20, 2014.
According to a Case Supplemental report filed March 16, 2015, Officer Jason Van Dyke is quoted as saying McDonald raised the knife and that he believed the teen was trying to kill him. In defense of his life, Van Dyke backpedaled and fired his handgun at McDonald to stop the attack.
The report said Van Dyke was aware of the widely accepted teaching that an assailant armed with a knife was considered a deadly threat if within 21 feet.
The report says Van Dyke kept firing -- 16 shots in all -- because Laquan McDonald was attempting to get up.
This description of events doesn’t appear to match the dashcam video of the incident released by the city on Nov. 24.
On Wednesday, Garry McCarthy said before being fired by Mayor Emanuel the same day that he knew his own office put out a misleading press release that said McDonald was moving toward or lunging at officers.
Van Dyke was charged with first-degree murder Nov. 24, more than a year after the fatal shooting of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald.
