*** UPDATED x3 - Sneed: Gone *** Gone?
Tuesday, Dec 1, 2015 - Posted by Rich Miller
* From the twitters…
* Meanwhile…
City Hall sources, meanwhile, talked to POLITICO, working to dispel theories that the mayor controlled the release of the explosive police shooting video to protect his own political interests, saying it was attorneys representing McDonald who first approached the city with a settlement offer. City Hall sources say the team representing McDonald reached out to the city on Feb. 27 — three days after Emanuel failed to clinch reelection and was forced into a runoff — asking to settle before filing a lawsuit. ‘I can tell you the timing of this was driven by their reaching us, by their desire to settle,’ one of the sources said.
…Adding… From earlier this morning…
Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy admitted Tuesday on NBC Chicago that the initial press release sent out after 17-year-old Laquan McDonald was fatally shot 16 times by an officer last year was wrong.
“The initial press release was mistaken, no two ways about it,” he said. “I guess that’s my fault.”
Police initially said an officer shot McDonald in the chest when the teen refused to drop a knife and continued to walk toward officers. Authorities also said the boy lunged at officers with the knife.
But dash-cam video of the shooting shows an officer shooting the teen several times as he appeared to walk away from police.
McCarthy added that he didn’t see dash-cam video of the shooting until the day after the press release went out.
“At that point I was too involved in trying to learn the circumstances of this event and what I needed to do internally and externally and communication is a part of that, no two ways about it, but in this particular case my greatest concern was that information came from elsewhere that he had lunged at the officers, which we knew not be the case and that was what I was trying to fix behind the scenes with the FOP quite frankly,” he said.
Ugh.
No wonder he’s on his way out.
*** UPDATE 1 *** Sneed…
Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy has been fired by Mayor Rahm Emanuel, sources said Tuesday.
*** UPDATE 2 *** The reporter who forced the city to release the LaQuan McDonald video says there’s more…
What did these officers do following the shooting? In the first video released, you don’t see them bending down to comfort or render aid to Laquan.
Instead, police moved around some of their vehicles. We know this because video from a car that arrived on scene five minutes after the shooting shows a different configuration of cars than were seen when Van Dyke fired. This is important because each of these cruisers records what happens in front of them thanks to dashcams. Police have said that the five videos they released are the only ones from the scene that night, but police did not release video from the police car that likely shows Laquan’s face—and thus likely shows the shooting from the clearest angle.
*** UPDATE 3 *** The problem with throwing him under the bus is there aren’t many more bodies left to jettison…
- Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:33 am:
McCarthy has to go. His appearance on NBC5 this morning didn’t help him.
Alvarez will “stay” through the Primary, but if she wins, she’ll be “forced out” too.
- Jose Abreu's next homer - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:34 am:
It’s not official until Hawk Harrelson is on tv telling me HE GONE!
- Ravenswood Right Winger - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:36 am:
and Chicago’s docile media continues to give Rahm a free pass.
Will bet that Rahm names a minority as the new Superintendent.
- Ghost - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:37 am:
did McCarthy fire the cop within a few months of the shooting? if not he should be removed.
- Anonymous - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:38 am:
Word is Garry will be having his retirement luncheon at 1:30 today on Erie Cafe’s patio. Bring a jacket.
- wordslinger - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:38 am:
McCarthy must have been the only one who didn’t see this coming.
Just yesterday, he was quoted as saying that the mayor assured him “he had his back.” What he didn’t understand is that Emanuel had his back by the hilt of a knife.
It was an obvious move, but it changes nothing when it comes to Emanuel. What did he know, when did he know it and what actions did he take in trying to cover up this “episode.”
- Anonymous - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:39 am:
“Described as looking glum”
How is that any different than he normally looks?
- Formerly Known As... - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:39 am:
How can Mayor Emanuel and the City Council throw Supt McCarthy under the bus without also throwing themselves under the bus?
They all knew about this for months. Sheesh, the aldermen approved the $5 Mill settlement back in April, and none of them said anything about Laquan McDonald until recently.
- Anonymous - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:44 am:
==did McCathy fire the cop within a few months of the shooting? if not he should be removed.==
I don’t think you understand how that works. He doesn’t have the power to just fire a cop at his whim. The unions don’t like that, and there’s an entire process to go through.
- Bud Keyes - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:46 am:
MRE needs a scapegoat.
- jeffinginchicago - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:47 am:
So the family attorneys used the election to maximize the payout? We keep quiet about a boy that we allowed to be beaten so badly that he was taken from us and you get to keep your job as mayor? My heart aches at all of the callousness.
- Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:48 am:
“Gone?”
Gone.
@Suntimes: SNEED EXCLUSIVE: Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy has been fired by Mayor Rahm Emanuel
- PublicServant - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:49 am:
===I was trying to fix behind the scenes with the FOP===
What about the public bud? You know, that trust thing. When you spoke, we listened…Live and learn.
- Streator Curmudgeon - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:49 am:
Bud Keyes @ 10:46 a.m.
You’re absolutely right.
- Downstate - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:50 am:
FKA at 10:39
You must be wrong! (Heavy Snark)
I’m on several boards, and we ALWAYS pay out $5 million settlements without asking any questions or follow-up. That’s just being a proper representative for the stakeholders (Again, this is snark).
- Stu - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:51 am:
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/politics/ct-chicago-police-superintendent-garry-mccarthy-20151201-story.html
- Gumby - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:53 am:
It would be a nice gesture for the family to establish a fund for abused children with at least some of the settlement money but I doubt that happens.
- Whatever - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:55 am:
Rahm: he holds everyone else “accountable” but himself.
- Namaste - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:55 am:
“The initial press release was mistaken, no two ways about it,” he said. “I guess that’s my fault.” Then he placed the noose around his own neck.
- SAP - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:00 am:
Feels like the manager of a bad baseball team trying to avoid getting the axe by firing the hitting coach.
- Muscular - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:01 am:
Rahm and Gary denied about a dozen FOIA requests for the release of the video until a court forced them to cough it up. It will not be surprising if Rahm feigns ignorance and blames Gary for keeping him uninformed.
- The Teflon Rahm - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:01 am:
Remind me, again, just who it was that authorized the court battle to get the video after the cops refused to disclose it and the mainstream media said “OK,” then walked away.
Wasn’t that Rahm Emanuel who authorized that court fight? Or maybe it wasn’t. The mayor, I’m sure, can find a way to say that it was really someone else’s fault. He can probably also find a way to say that it isn’t really a leader’s job to call the shots in a case like this.
This is stinkier than Blagojevich ever got. It really is. And no one is going to go to jail or get punished in any way save McCarthy, who is a much smaller fish than the mayor, who should resign, and the state’s attorney, who should also resign.
- Team Sleep - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:03 am:
10:44 - people on this board may understand that, but the general public either doesn’t care or doesn’t care to understand. A lot of the voting populace would hear that statement and say that’s an excuse.
But given the fact that Officer Van Dyke had 18 civilian complaints against him, perhaps Commissioner McCarthy should’ve given the police union the finger and fired him.
After what we’ve all seen in the aftermath of the GI Joe debacle, everyone will be on high alert (pun not intended) in regards to police-community relations.
- info - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:05 am:
“The search for a scapegoat is the easiest of all hunting expeditions.”
-Dwight D. Eisenhower
- Formerly Known As... - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:05 am:
2500 or more yearly shootings was not a reason to fire the Sup?
Above 350 yearly murders was not a reason to fire the Sup?
A $5 Mill settlement to the family of Laquan McDonald was not a reason to fire the Sup?
But video is released of one allegedly bad officer our of thousands committing one of those murders in uniform? That is when Chicago finally fires the Sup? smh
- Norseman - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:06 am:
Word is right, the writing was on the wall. The only way McCarthy could have saved his job was to blackmail the mayor with video of he and Rahm watching the McDonald video with popcorn and beer election night.
My money is on a few more folks being thrown under the bus.
- wordslinger - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:08 am:
This is a monumental challenge for Fardon and the federales. The probabilities of obstruction of justice are wide-ranging and involve a huge cast of characters, from the bottom to the very top.
And now, everyone is watching.
- Wensicia - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:12 am:
Not surprising, Emanuel needed to take the focus away from his office and actions.
- Formerly Known As... - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:14 am:
@Downstate - nailed it. Nobody said nutin about a $5 Mill settlement? Even the Koschmann settlement was only $250000 iirc.
@jeffinginchicago - chilling.
- Snucka - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:15 am:
Personally, I would like to thank Rahm for ensuring that this video was not released before an indictment was handed down. That probably prevented violence and unrest in our city, if the situations in Ferguson and Baltimore are any indication.
- Sad - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:16 am:
Rahm playing the “didn’t want to hinder investigation” card. What a joke. All 3 need to go! One has fallen now Alvarez and Emmanuel need to go too. She must know whether or not the mayors office pressured her not to indict before election. Cut him loose Anita, throw him to the wolves cause you are next it looks like
- cdog - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:18 am:
This thing is messed up on so many layers and angles, it is disgusting. “Public servants” that have no idea what that means. (Hint–ego is last)
As far as McCarthy’s lack of basic leadership skills and human decency, once he fully processed the truth, during that first week, he should have forcefully corrected the culture that allowed the cover-up to get legs.
Instead, he appears to have chosen to continue to orchestrate the cover-up operation.
Maybe Alvarez can file charges against McCarthy.
Bye bye.
- Dirty Red - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:22 am:
McCarthy wasn’t trusted by the ranks…like the next guy Rahm appoints will be?
- walker - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:23 am:
Not to exonerate him in any way, but he inherited this police culture of cover up. It’s of long-standing, and States Attorneys and FOP are fully complicit in it. He just didn’t do anything effectively to change it.
- Not Rich - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:25 am:
If McCarthy saw the video the day after the shooting, then Rahm knew that day too. The Mayor is as culpable as McCarthy, you can not watch that video and not get out in front of the problem. horrific..
- A guy - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:27 am:
He recovered from a heart attack. He got married recently. One would assume he’s financially secure after a long and successful career. Might be the best thing that ever happened to him. He’s also now a guy who can tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Hope his retirement is pleasant.
- Cathartt Representative - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:29 am:
For the fall guy to be this high up, Rahm must really be sweating it. One down, two to go.
- Sam Weinberg - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:33 am:
- jeffinginchicago - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15
== So the family attorneys used the election to maximize the payout? ==
Anyone who was thinking about “maximizing the payout” would have played chicken with the City for a year or two. The second a date was set for trial (where that video would be aired and enter the public record), the City would have paid three or four times that $5m to settle the case.
- Amalia - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:34 am:
the family should not be blamed for their tactics in trying to get a settlement, including the timing of the release of the video. each and every case in the justice system is supposed to be considered on the facts and merits of that case, not the system, or the percentages incarcerated of one group or another. that case. that victim. the family has suffered and they have a right to their own personal justice as they interact with the system.
- Cheryl44 - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:34 am:
Emanuel needs to go too. Also Alvarez, and the spokesperson who talked about this kid ‘lunging’ at an officer, and every single policeman who stood there and watched a fellow officer murder a child.
- Steve - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:37 am:
For McCarthy this might be a blessing in disguise. He probably will not want to deal with problems coming down the pipeline.
- FormerParatrooper - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:40 am:
It is not who is thrown under the bus, it is who is left at the top. Will Rahm appoint someone who will tackle the culture and change it? Or will he find a “yes” man who will look good for the cameras and provide the false sense of change?
- The Buck Starts Here - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:40 am:
Emanuel rode into town boasting of his management expertise. After 4/2 years, his choices to head the police department and schools have left under clouds of scandal.
In both cases, the scandals raise questions about his judgment, or as Rod would say “what was he thinking?”
- Chicagonk - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:41 am:
@Dirty Red
If the replacement ends up being Leo Schmitz, that should appease the rank and file.
- Sue - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:42 am:
Rahm should reimburse the city the 5 million out of his campaign fund since the money was obviously an election expense
- El Duderino - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:44 am:
===He recovered from a heart attack. He got married recently. One would assume he’s financially secure after a long and successful career. Might be the best thing that ever happened to him. He’s also now a guy who can tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth. Hope his retirement is pleasant.===
He’s also a guy who will probably keep his mouth shut, and fade away quietly into retirement (or a cushy private sector job) if he knows what’s good for him. Anyone who takes that job knows there is a high probability that they will eventually need to fall on their sword to provide cover.
- Rod - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:48 am:
I have no doubt that with Garry McCarthy being put out the hunt to link the Mayor to a possible cover up will intensify. For good reason many journalists smell blood and will dig and dig. If Rahm is proven clean it will have to be based on more than unnamed City Hall sources talking to POLITICO.
- @MisterJayEm - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:50 am:
“he’s financially secure after a long and successful career.”
He was fired because one of his subordinates killed a man in cold blood, and then his organization tried to cover up that murder. And that wrongdoing is still under investigation by the feds. And there are more cases to be investigated.
And homicides are still an epidemic in some Chicago neighborhoods.
Just what would it take for McCarthy to be “unsuccessful”?
“He’s also now a guy who can tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.”
Yes, like many retirees, Garry may try something new in his retirement. But I think landscape painting is more likely than truth-telling.
– MrJM
- Anonymous - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:53 am:
The Police Union for Chicago is one heck of a organization and the crazy thing is that it is lead by a Disabled Officer. Only in Chicago.
- Robert the Bruce - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:56 am:
=In this particular case my greatest concern was that information came from elsewhere that he had lunged at the officers, which we knew not be the case.== - McCarthy, describing the day after the press release came out. Depending on how quickly he turned information over to Alvarez and/or Rahm, could he be in trouble with the feds for covering up a murder?
- Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:57 am:
===He recovered from a heart attack.===
Inconsequential.
===He got married recently.===
Inconsequential.
===One would assume he’s financially secure after a long and successful career.===
What do you base your “assumption” on? Seriously.
===Might be the best thing that ever happened to him.===
Being dismissed in apparent discrace?
===He’s also now a guy who can tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.===
So he was lying before now? Ugh.
===Hope his retirement is pleasant.===
An ongoing Federal investigation won’t make anything pleasant for anyone in this.
- Robert the Bruce - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 11:58 am:
==Alvarez will “stay” through the Primary==
Agree with OW. It’s possible too that she knows too much about Rahm’s role in the delay/coverup…that could save her from being forced out.
- Robert the Bruce - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:00 pm:
======He’s also now a guy who can tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.====
I doubt it. Outside chance though that McCarthy is mad about being the scapegoat, and that he has records of what Rahm knew, and when he knew it.
- Anonymous - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:01 pm:
==If the replacement ends up being Leo Schmitz, that should appease the rank and file.==
You honestly think he’d leave being the Director of State Police to jump into this mess after Rahm just threw McCarthy under the bus? LOL
- latina loca - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:05 pm:
Corporation Counsel–the City’s attorney needs to go too. He was part of the cover up-recommended a settlement before lawsuit was even filed; failed to mention incident was a possible murder. He gets paid by taxpayers to represent the City’s interest not Rahm’s interest.
- Responsa - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:12 pm:
This was an inevitable outcome. There had to be “a public firing” and both Rahm and Alvarez are elected not hired. McCarthy made some mistakes in his media response and communication but he did not fire the gun sixteen times or erase the Burger King tapes immediately after the shooting. I blame useless Alvarez more than anyone else in public life in how this has dragged on for a year. The police union is apparently standing support with the bad cop shooter Van Dyke, and with the other responders who played a disgusting role in the immediate aftermath of the shooting. What message does that send?
I think it’s wishful thinking on the part of many commenters here that Rahm would have lost the election if the tape had been shown or if payoff to McDonald’s family had been known at that time.
- Dozer - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:13 pm:
its never the lie, its always the cover up that gets you in the end….they never learn
- In 630 - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:25 pm:
Appease the rank and file? Seems like a new superintendent doing what needs doing would be a divisive figure among the rank and file. The good people in the dept need to see the bad held accountable and purged instead of validated by the IPRA. That process, by necessity, will make a lot of people, and the FOP, very angry.
- Mason born - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:27 pm:
Okay. He’s gone. Good riddance! Perhaps the man who fired him should do the same.
Question after watching the video did the chief put van dyke on modified assignment or anything? No way towatch that and thing the man should be anywhere near the general public with a firearm.
- Politix - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:30 pm:
Elected officials are a whole other animal. The only way Alvarez will be forced out is via the primary election. And I think it’s safe to say voters will be out en force for this one.
- A guy - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:31 pm:
+++===One would assume he’s financially secure after a long and successful career.===
What do you base your “assumption” on? Seriously.+++
I’d base it on a pension from the City of NY and the City of Chicago.
Everyone here seems to agree he’s a scapegoat. He has a future. Seems he could write an interesting tome.
If you think heart attack’s and getting married are inconsequential, we could certainly debate that all day long. Those are life changing events, my friend. Much like today is a life changing event for him. I predict (and hope) it’s a change for the better for him. From a distance, I’ve always liked him.
- Robert the Bruce - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:31 pm:
==I think it’s wishful thinking on the part of many commenters here that Rahm would have lost the election if the tape had been shown or if payoff to McDonald’s family had been known at that time==
Agree. But part of the reason for the delay, I suspect, is Rahm’s calculation that he would be slightly less likely to win the election if post-video release riots hit Chicago.
- Formerly Known As... - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:34 pm:
==One would assume he’s financially secure after a long and successful career.==
With five years as Chicago’s highest paid public employee, plus his pensions, he should be.
- RTR - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:40 pm:
The “Alvarez must resign” talk is so silly. She an elected official who will be on the ballot in four months. The voter can take her out if they wish.
- Formerly Known As... - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:42 pm:
==cover up==
Respectfully, didn’t the FBI say there was no missing tape from the Burger King? Van Dyk is also the only cop charged with first degree murder in city history iirc, the city council approved paying the family a $5 Mill settlement, and the family attorney called it a ==a fair and prompt resolution==.
Is there evidence of a cover up?
- wordslinger - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:45 pm:
Gee, I sure am glad the former chief of police can tell the truth now.
I would have thought honest service was implied in the job, as well as the oath.
- @MisterJayEm - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:46 pm:
@davemckinney:
psy·cho·log·i·cal pro·jec·tion n. Also known as “blame shifting,” is a theory in psychology in which humans defend themselves against their own unpleasant impulses by denying their existence while attributing them to others.
– MrJM
- Amalia - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:51 pm:
re the primary to come….
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nMcUDtXFxbU
- wordslinger - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:55 pm:
–”He has become an issue rather than dealing with the issue.”–
By that logic, Mayor Emanuel, what are you waiting for? There’s the door.
The chutzpah on that guy.
- nixit71 - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 12:58 pm:
Guessing McCarthy’s next job will not be as a statistician.
- Nieva - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 1:03 pm:
Sure would like to see the e-mails that were sent between the Mayor and McCarthy while this was going on..
- Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 1:04 pm:
===Everyone here seems to agree he’s a scapegoat. ===
I don’t see many giving McCarthy the scapegoat pass… What are you reading?
===If you think heart attack’s and getting married are inconsequential, we could certainly debate that all day long. ===
If McCarthy was married, single, healthy or struggling, that has zero to do with the video, the 16 shots, the responses or even the fallout. Zero.
===I predict (and hope) it’s a change for the better for him.===
There’s an ongoing federal investigation. You think that doesbt weigh heavy on his mind?
===From a distance, I’ve always liked him.===
Well, there’s that… Ugh.
Oh! I “forgot”…
===I’d base it on a pension from the City of NY and the City of Chicago.===
Are you that “neighbor” that judges the other neighbor “boy, they must be well off because of… ”
… Then find out family struggles, debt, family crisis, and actually know ZERO about that “wealthy neighbor”.
Geez, Louise…
- Anonymous - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 1:16 pm:
Amazing how McCarthy tries to blame the union for the lack of discipline of the officers instead of the Rahm-appointed head of IPRA which investigates police shootings. https://www.cityofchicago.org/content/dam/city/depts/cpb/PoliceDiscipline/AllegMiscond201505.pdf
- A guy - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 1:22 pm:
Willie, you’ve jumped the tracks man. Don’t argue just to argue, it weakens your good arguments, of which you normally are capable of.
Sling, did you read the Chief’s comments today? Internal messaging vs. external, etc? Focus on “the whole truth”. No one accused him of lying. See comment to Willy above. You’re just arguing to argue. Silly man.
- Anonymous - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 1:27 pm:
==Amazing how McCarthy tries to blame the union==
Remind me, who was it who put out the initial statement that has sparked everyone’s concerns about a coverup? Who is defending the cop in termination proceedings?
- Anonymous - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 1:29 pm:
Not absolving FOP by any means. But under the law, it’s IPRA not FOP which makes the initial decision laying the groundwork for bringing charges against an officer. That head needs to roll also.
- wordslinger - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 1:31 pm:
– He’s now also a guy who can tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.–
If he wasn’t doing that before in the context of this shooting, what would you call that?
- Oswego Willy - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 1:39 pm:
===He recovered from a heart attack. He got married recently.===
This has ZERO to do with what has happened, why the “resignation”, or why McCarthy got on NBC5 to blow up the works today.
- Jack Stephens - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 1:41 pm:
This coming from the Mayor who also conspired to withhold the video and spent $5,000,000.00 in Entitlements, with no revenue offset to keep the family quiet.
- @MisterJayEm - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 1:50 pm:
“Buh… buh… but… gravitas!!1!”
– MrJM
- Tim - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 2:17 pm:
After today’s presser, WGN had a lengthy interview with a former lead investigator of IPRA, who reiterated the concerns he’d aired in the past (including allegations of being asked to change findings of shootings they’d found unjustified):
http://www.wbez.org/news/city-fires-investigator-who-found-cops-fault-shootings-112423
- A guy - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 2:20 pm:
===If he wasn’t doing that before in the context of this shooting, what would you call that?===
Spin and political CYA. You’re welcome.
- wordslinger - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 2:25 pm:
Guy, spin and political CYA regarding a murder and it’s cover up and/or investigation?
I can see why you admire McCarthy so much.
- LarryMullholland - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 2:34 pm:
The Power & Influence of a Police Union Lobby in Illinois:
The Top Cop in Chicago knowingly lied to the public regarding the circumstances of the murder of this troubled abused teenager over a year ago;
McCarthy stated “…we knew (lunging) not be the case and that was what I was trying to fix behind the scenes with the FOP quite frankly,” he said.
So know we all know the butt hurt feelings and good relations with powerful Police Union ranks as a higher priority over rights of citizens’ and the public’s right to factual information regarding the murder of McDonald. Sickening!
- Jon Spicer - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 4:57 pm:
Rahm has to go. The media gives him a pass but if the citizens focus their outrage directly at the mayor’s office- Rahm will at least have to answer the question “Did you order the code red?!”
- The Teflon Rahm - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 4:57 pm:
“He has become the issue, rather than dealing with the issue.”
I don’t think so, at least, that’s not what people are saying. The mayor is more the issue than anyone else.
- Anonymous 88 - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 5:13 pm:
The FBI is investigating, at the very least, whether the digital recording from Burger King was tampered with by police. Am I crazy to imagine that their investigation might eventually reach the mayor’s office? If the Justice Department were to investigate a pattern of civil rights violations and an attendant culutre of cover-up (something along the lines of the DOJ investigation in Cleveland that resulted in a consent decree being signed by officials there), might the FBI not want to question the mayor, and his staff, as to when they first viewed the video, and/or when it was at least made available to them? MRE might like to tell the public that he did not see the video until very recently; however, he’d better be sure he has his story straight if the FBI comes knocking on his door. Lying to the FBI counts as perjury — as Denny Hastert might remind us.
- Wordslinger - Tuesday, Dec 1, 15 @ 10:46 pm:
On Chicago Tonight, Alvarez just said that the FBI and U.S. Attorney have been basically running the investigation since last December, she has never talked with Emanuel about the case, and that she fully supports a Justice Department Civil Rights investigation.
Those are markers.
- Blue dog dem - Wednesday, Dec 2, 15 @ 2:30 am:
…..I guess that’s my fault. My guess—it’s not really all his fault.