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* Tribune…
Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez announced Monday that no criminal charges will be brought against a Chicago police officer in the fatal shooting of Ronald Johnson III because a dash-cam video of the shooting shows Johnson wielding a gun.
* ABC Chicago…
“The legal question in this case is not whether Officer Hernandez shot Mr. Johnson and killed him, those facts are not in dispute. The legal questions are: Number 1, is there sufficient evidence that exists to meet the legal burden of proof required to bring charges? Number 2, in using deadly force, did Officer Hernandez act reasonably under the law?” Alvarez said.
* Sun-Times…
A dashcam video, which was enhanced to provide the clearest view, showed Johnson just moments before he was shot and demonstrates that he was carrying a gun, according to the Cook County state’s attorney’s office.
At a news conference Monday morning, Alvarez and one of her deputies gave an extremely detailed narrative of what happened leading up to the shooting of Johnson, including audio tapes of 911 calls, police communications, maps and dashcam video.
Johnson and three other men had been at a party at 53rd and King Drive in Oct. and as they left their car was shot at.
The driver of the car heard the sound of a cocking gun from Ronald Johnson, who sat behind him.
* DNA Info…
The video was analyzed by experts and Alvarez said they are confident Johnson was carrying a weapon. She said the people in the vehicle with Johnson, who attended the party with him, also confirmed that he had a weapon. When asked how sure she was about Johnson being armed, she acknowledged the video was not “Hollywood quality.”
“They’re grainy, it’s dark, it’s blurry, it happened so fast,” Alvarez said, but after consulting with multiple experts she said they are confident that Johnson was carrying a gun.
Again, the video had no audio. Alvarez called the lack of audio in the dashcam videos “frustrating” and said the Chicago Police Department needs to answer for that.
A screen grab from the video is here. It’s hard to see anything.
*** UPDATE *** Mayor Emanuel…
“A life was lost here, and that is a tragedy that can’t be taken lightly no matter the circumstances. That’s why independent investigations are so crucial in these cases. Now, as our independent police review authority resumes its investigation to determine whether the shooting was consistent with CPD’s policy, we must also ask ourselves if the existing policies on the use of deadly force are the right ones and if the training we provide to officers to make split-second decisions in life or death situations is sufficient.”
posted by Rich Miller
Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 12:26 pm
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“Frustrating” is one word for it. I wonder if the DoJ will have other ways to describe it.
– MrJM
Comment by @MisterJayEm Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 12:28 pm
I saw the presser and video. This is not anywhere near as bad as the McDonald video where he was walking away with a short knife. He was running. There was a chase. There were lots of cops and he seemed to have a handgun in his hand. Unless the video has been altered, and there’s no evidence of that, then it appears what the cop did was wrong but not criminal.
Comment by Chicago Cynic Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 12:37 pm
You can strap a camera to a dude jumping from the edge of space and get HD footage. This is the best CPD can do?
Maybe they need to get sponsored by Red Bull.
Comment by LizPhairTax Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 12:39 pm
For the love of mercy, no one is going to want to be cleared of a crime by of all people, Anita Alvarez. Right now, she has about as much respect in her current job as would a goat farmer in a space shuttle launch.
Seeing her handling your case should make you want to contact Michael Jackson’s anesthesiologist. I’d trust Mike Brady as architect/brain surgeon, before I’d trust Alvarez on anything more complex than ordering breakfast at Taco Bell.
Comment by VanillaMan Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 12:41 pm
Look: If a police officer can’t shoot a man who has just a) refused commands to stand down and drop a gun, b) wrestled with an officer and c) run toward other officers and a public park with a gun still in his hand, then why give police officers guns at all? Unless you all have some way of showing Alvarez or CPD doctored the video, get back to talking about Laquan McDonald, because this case is nothing like that one - other than the guy who got shot was black. Unfortunate, but if a police officer tells you to drop your gun, and you choose to not do it, and instead try running away, with the gun still in your hand, you have to know something bad is going to happen.
Comment by JB13 Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 12:49 pm
“You can strap a camera to a dude jumping from the edge of space and get HD footage. This is the best CPD can do?”
No audio plus the graininess of a 7th-generation VHS copy.
Makes you wonder about the dash-cams that lost the bid to supply the CPD.
– MrJM
Comment by @MisterJayEm Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 12:53 pm
the legal commentators on CNN post the presser–one black, one white– were impressed with the depth of the information presented by Alvarez and the ASA and they agreed that the totality of the evidence pointed to no charges. Information presented included relevant law to help the public understand how officer involved shootings are covered in the law and video of a shooting of an officer where an offender was running away and did not even turn his body to shoot which helps to understand how the issue of shootings someone as they are running away is considered.
Comment by Amalia Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 12:54 pm
A popular police blog has discussed the audio. They said video often works, audio often fails.
They blamed cheap equipment, maintenance and CPD rejection of an offer by the manufacturer to install the appropriate electrical systems on vehicles as causes iirc.
Comment by Formerly Known As... Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 12:56 pm
I look forward to seeing one single scrap of evidence that Alvarez has in fact been “frustrated” by alleged dashcam malfunctions. Apparently she’s been going quietly crazy over it for more than a year now.
Comment by crazybleedingheart Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 1:17 pm
So, if the video shows the gun, where is the gun on the video that was released?
Comment by wordslinger Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 1:25 pm
Can’t wait to hear more about those very productive conversations with Johnson’s friends who threw their dead friend under the bus, saying he was armed and that they heard the gun being cocked.
Did any experts who reviewed the tape determine that he wasn’t armed or that it was inconclusive?
Is it the position of the Cook County SA that failure to obey the command of a police officer (a petty offense) and/or resisting arrest (a misdemeanor) can justify the use of deadly force?
I bet CCWers would be interested to know whether the SA considers it “reasonable” for the state to ratchet up from minor charges to the death penalty based on exercise of the 2nd Amendment.
Comment by crazybleedingheart Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 1:27 pm
bullet from the gun was found in the car that was shot at, the car that contained 4 individuals, including Reginald Johnson III. that is evidence that supports the conversations with Johnson’s friends. the gun is in the possession of law enforcement and was tested to show that it had been used in another shooting.
it really is sad, that someone is dead, that criminals endanger the lives of residents and the police by shooting. all after some party.
Comment by Amalia Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 1:34 pm
Whose BIL is selling this crappy equipment to the CPD?
Comment by Cheryl44 Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 1:36 pm
It’s funny to read “the offender pointed his weapon in the direction of the pursuing officers,” don’t see it actually happen, but are to believe there were 2 off-camera officers who were in grave danger and were the actual reason for the shooting.
If I were Anita, I might be “frustrated” about having to rely on police reports written by habitual and notorious liars.
Does that “frustrate” her?
Comment by crazybleedingheart Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 1:38 pm
Who are the review experts?
If the investigation is now over, release the transcripts of interviews with his acquaintances in the car. Where are the transcripts Anita?
Comment by Precinct Captain Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 1:40 pm
The whole incident occurred because of a report that black men were shooting. Q: did the autopsy show that Johnson had fired a gun recently?
If not, and given his friends’ testimony about being shot at, it would seem that Johnson was likely a victim of attempted murder, whom the police were supposed to be protecting, not policing.
Comment by crazybleedingheart Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 1:42 pm
== it would seem that Johnson was likely a victim of attempted murder==
prior to actually being killed, I mean.
Comment by crazybleedingheart Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 1:42 pm
Are there other videos?
Comment by Precinct Captain Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 1:43 pm
If you’re going to take 14 months to explain something to the public, there really shouldn’t be any questions remaining when you leave the podium.
Comment by crazybleedingheart Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 1:47 pm
Why should the Chicago Police Department have to answer for the poor quality of its video cameras? It is more properly something that the Purchasing Department ought to answer for. The politically connected vendor who was willing to provide the cheapest equipment and the highest price following the bid rigging probably got the contract. The politicians not the police are to blame if the cameras are less than optimal.
Comment by Anonymous Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 1:49 pm
==The politicians not the police are to blame if the cameras are less than optimal.==
How many reports of malfunctioning dashcams have POs made?
Comment by crazybleedingheart Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 1:54 pm
crazybleedingheart, we know we can rely on you to ask questions no matter what the situation.
Comment by Amalia Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 1:55 pm
You seem to want to answer so many of them, Amalia. Go ahead and take a couple free swings. All links to evidence accepted.
Comment by crazybleedingheart Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 2:02 pm
Agreed that this seems inconclusive–we can’t know what we can’t see, and we can’t see what happened here.
As for the issue of the quality of police videos, missing audio, etc., interesting take from a recent NYT op-ed writer, who says that the cops shouldn’t be in control of footage from body cams, dashboard vids, etc.:
http://www.nytimes.com/2015/12/02/opinion/the-real-problem-with-police-video.html
This seems a valid point. Why do we put the cops in charge of activating video equipment and making sure that it is functional? It would seem easy to install a system that flags malfunctions so that they can be promptly addressed, and it would serve the public trust to have an entity outside the police department in charge of this, as well as preserving video evidence. That’s not taking any power away from cops–indeed, it would relieve the police department of the burden of keeping tabs and maintaining a camera system. At the same time, it would build accountability.
If there is a good reason not to do this, I would like to hear it.
Comment by The Teflon Rahm Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 2:25 pm
The autopsy takes the time to mention that Johnson pointed a gun at police. Interesting that could be observed from the morgue but not gunpowder residue.
Comment by crazybleedingheart Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 2:45 pm
Q: Does Rahm Emanuel think Hernandez acted reasonably? Why or why not?
Comment by crazybleedingheart Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 2:52 pm
After watching the entire presser which included the video I am in agreement that no charges were warranted.
I can’t speak to other options available to the police but this occurred at the scene of a reported shooting. His friends told investigators that he “cocked a gun” minutes before. He was running with a gun, skirmishing with police, refusing to heed police directives. You do that and it ends badly.
This is the wrong case to pile on Alvarez (who has great hair) or the CPD.
Comment by Chicago PR Guy Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 3:03 pm
there is no one size fits all on cases. sorry that the narrative of this one does not fit the political scenario being drawn up.
Comment by Amalia Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 4:36 pm
at 26th and Cal, the trial of Commander Glenn Evans on two criminal counts, including official misconduct, is starting. Alvarez is being accused of nonexistent prosecutions against CPD officers so I guess protesters don’t count a Commander as a police officer.
Comment by Amalia Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 4:45 pm
==- Amalia - Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 4:45 pm:==
Nearly 3 years later–and only this fast because the victim filed a complaint with IPRA almost immediately.
Comment by Precinct Captain Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 5:55 pm
don’t by any means think this case against Evans is easy, even with a victim filed complaint. the victim could not ID him. the DNA got in and that was a big win. but his community loves his hard ass approach. charging this guy is big, even if it ultimately becomes a loss as many predict.
Comment by Amalia Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 6:34 pm
I don’t see no gun in his hand. I thought Police have to announce “Police…drop your weapon.” With all due resect, even if the missing audio collaborated such, to me it looks like a Chicago Cop ran on to the scene and anxiously emptied his weapon at a running suspect. The fact that he was shot several times in the back says it all. I don’t see Murder Charges but definitely reckless homicide. Hernandez should be fired from the force. Someone being shot in the back while running away should be disturbing to anyone.
Comment by anon Monday, Dec 7, 15 @ 6:43 pm
from the second city cop blog, regarding vehicle cameras:
https://www.blogger.com/comment.g?blogID=13350456&postID=5990372565919678903&bpli=1
if everything said in second city cop is true, it’s going to be a long, very unhappy report back from the folks at the Justice Department…
Comment by Lynn S. Tuesday, Dec 8, 15 @ 5:19 am
anon at 6:43 pm
A forensic lab separate from the SA’s office indicated after analysis of the film that the deceased was carrying a gun. This seemed to be confirmed by his friends.
Multiple police yelled at him to stop and drop.
The cop who shot him was in a car driving toward the deceased and saw him resist and push a uniformed cop to the ground, and then run with gun in hand. The cop did not run on the scene and empty his weapon.
The cop shot five times and hit him twice. He stopped shooting when the deceased fell to the ground.
The SA showed a video of an August prosecution in which a fleeing, armed criminal shot and hit a cop without turning around. He simply held the gun behind him and pulled the trigger.
Someone running around the neighborhood with a gun is disturbing to everyone and is also a good way to get shot and killed.
Comment by Chicago PR Guy Tuesday, Dec 8, 15 @ 9:01 am