Attorney General Lynch to Launch Pattern or Practice Investigation of Chicago Police Department

By Gloria Dulan-Wilson

Hello All:

Well, if what the NAACP Legal Defense Fund says is true, there will be a thorough investigation of police practices and abuses coming to the Chicago Police Department.

In a communique received from the Legal Defense Fund, the investigation was precipitated by the cruel manner in which 17 year old Laquan McDonald was gunned down, and the lies told by several police officers to cover up the heinous act, despite the fact that camera footage told an entirely different story!! 

With so much evidence on camera, one wonders what the motivation would be for blatantly lying - not only to protect ones self, but to cover up for officers who were clearly in violation  the law; guilty of murder, and had no sign or remorse whatsoever.  Perhaps, in addition to a pattern of egregious police brutality, there is also internal intimidation leveled against officers who might ordinarily come forward, but don't for fear of their lives, or the lives of their family members.

Chicago  is a tough town, to say the least.  Their police, the gangs, the politicians, even their activists, are not to be taken lightly.  Perhaps that's the reason the gang activities have continued unabated over the past 8 years.  They were terrible before President Obama - remember Cabrini Green? - and they're still out of control.  Likewise, the police department has been known to allegedly turn a blind eye to certain criminal activities, if the price is right; and lean on others if not.  But people are getting fed up with waiting for the locals to reign in their so- called law enforcement officers.  It's also a known fact, that when law enforcement runs the town, humanity goes out the window.  Chicago, and other cities, appear to be heading in that direction.  

The fact that the Chicago PD had the audacity to lie about the circumstances of McDonald's death shows that they either think they are the law; they are above the law, or that they can beat the rap and defeat any attempt to prove any violation of either civil or human rights.  Corruption has reigned so long in the "toddling town" it will be interesting to see what shakes out, and what crawls from under those rocks as they begin to probe the underbelly of Alfonse Capone's favorite haunt.

I enclosed a copy of the statement from the LDF for your information, as well as to show those among us, who are naysayers, that our venerable veteran organizations are still on top of and in front of things that affect us as Black people.   We are all in this together, each organization taking one part of Leviathan can bring own its total eradication.

Kudos to the NAACP LDF; to the brothers and sisters who are keeping the pressure on, to Loretta Lynch and the Department of Justice, and to those of us citizens who aren't going to take it any more. 

Stay Blessed &

ECLECTICALLY BLACK

Gloria 

NAACP Legal Defense Fund Statement on Department of Justice's Civil Rights Probe of the Chicago Police Department 

Contact: Nyasha Laing nlaing@naacpldf.org, 212-965-2235, 646-630-5364
New York, New York –The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) supports the Justice Department's decision to open a civil rights 'pattern or practice' investigation of the Chicago Police Department to determine whether the department has engaged in unlawful policing practices.  "The police-involved shooting death of 17-year old Laquan McDonald and the notorious Chicago police torture cases are clear signs of a troubled police department," said Sherrilyn Ifill, President and Director-Counsel of LDF. "We are particularly gratified that the Department of Justice will focus part of its investigation on accountability within the Chicago Police Department,” said Ifill. “Given the number of officers on the scene of the Laquan McDonald killing and the willingness of some officers to corroborate a false account of how the teenager was killed, it is clear that accountability systems within the Chicago Police Department are broken. This cannot continue.”
A graphic video of a Chicago police officer shooting McDonald multiple times shows the teen moving away from the officers.  This contradicts reports by officers on the scene that McDonald moved toward the officers with a knife when he was shot.
Police ‘cover ups’ or the ‘blue wall of silence’ have existed for decades in Chicago. It was so entrenched that state elected officials established the Illinois Torture Inquiry and Relief Commission in 2009 to investigate and address the wrongful convictions of persons who were tortured by police and forced to confess to crimes they did not commit under the watch of former police chief Jon Burge. Reports estimate that about 192 persons, primarily African-American men, were tortured by Chicago police officers in the 1980’s and 1990’s.
“This type of police violence and abuse against civilians is what motivated Congress to give the Justice Department the authority to conduct ‘pattern or practice’ investigations,” said Janai Nelson, Associate Director-Counsel of LDF. “It is our hope that the Justice Department will consider charges under all federal civil and criminal statutes applicable to the actions of the Chicago Police Department.” However, this investigation does not relieve the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office from the obligation to pursue state obstruction of justice or other charges against any officers who made false statements or otherwise interfered with the investigation of the killing of Laquan McDonald. Given the failure of the state’s attorney to pursue these charges more than a year after Mr. McDonald’s death, we call for an independent special prosecutor to pursue this investigation.
LDF has successfully supported calls for a federal civil rights probe of the Baltimore Police Department, and eagerly awaits the Justice Department’s response to its request for a similar probe in North Charleston, South Carolina following the highly publicized death of Walter Scott, who was shot in the back by a North Charleston police officer.
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About The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) 
The NAACP Legal Defense and Educational Fund, Inc. (LDF) is not a part of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) although LDF was founded by the NAACP and shares its commitment to equal rights. Since 1957, LDF has been a completely separate organization.  Please refer to us in media attributions as the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund or LDF. 

I'm also attaching the following video - hope you can access it  Click on the word "video" below:

Wesley Etheridge's video.

5,072,784 Views

Wesley EtheridgeFollow

February 13

Please watch and share this video. We should all know about this story.

NOW THAT YOU KNOW, WHAT ARE YOU GOING TO DO ABOUT IT?

Stay Blessed 
Gloria  

RAINBOW PUSH COALITION HOLDS PRESS CONFERENCE IN CHICAGO IN REFERENCE TO POLICE SHOOTING OF LAQUAN McDONALD

By Gloria Dulan-Wilson

Hello All:

I just watched a live streamed press conference from Rev. Jesse Jackson's Rainbow Push Coalition, which took place yesterday in Chicago - 

I'm sharing the link with you here  please watch it  - it's very constructive and instructive - especially for those of us in other communities who are also battling the egregious abuse of power wielded at the hands of the local police departments, and in many cases co-signed by the local mayors and other minions who are suppose to represent the people, but put their own interests first.

http://livestream.com/PushTVLive/events/4554255/videos/106001690

Chicago mayor, Rahm Emanuel, while commended for having fired the superintendent of the police department, has also been called into question in reference to other vital video information that has yet to be revealed to the public.

There are also calls for federal investigation of the entire process on the part of Attorney General Loretta Lynch.  On Tuesday, Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan requested that the U.S. Department of Justice investigate whether the Chicago Police Department's practices violate federal and constitutional law.  Madigan in a letter to U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch asked that the investigation weigh, among other things, the department's use of deadly force and whether a pattern or practice of discriminatory policing exists.

Additionally, there are calls for Chicago's a.g., Anita Alvarez, to step done for complicity in the cover up and a long line of injustices vis a vis the Police and the Citizens of Chicago's Black community.  They have threatened to vote her out and are vowing to launch a voter registration campaign so comprehensive she'll have no chance of re-election.

I posted this link for those who have the temerity and the gall to question whether or not Rev. Jesse Jackson is on the case in reference to these atrocities.  The same criticism has been leveled at Rev. Al Sharpton.  It's apparent that those who have made such accusations are not aware that they each head coalitions - which they put together - of individuals, activists, expertise, and supporters - who bring their collective expertise and dedication together in the interest of justice and change.

There are protest demonstrations taking place in the streets of Chicago, while others are wasting their money on Christmas gifts that go to continue to underwrite some of the very people are the cause of the problems.  The ones who underwrite corrupt politicians and keep them in office as long as they turn a blind eye to brutality and bias.

And the coalition is comprehenve - they include experts on judicial and legislative issues; criminal justice, media, community activism, etc.  It's not a one size fits all organization.  While some are leading protest movements, others are in city hall dealing with the mayor, while others are in DC dealing with the Attorney General's office.  

Nor are they afraid to call a spade a spade.  This is not a week-end protest - they are in it for the long haul, as evidenced by the days of demonstrations which finally resulted in  Mayor Emanuel's firing of the city's police superintendent.

Even with the squad-car video showing a white Chicago police officer shooting a Laquan McDonald 16 times  on October 20, 2014, the foot dragging had continued, until the protesters showed they were not going to take it any more.


The video footage of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald's fatal shooting the night of Oct. 20, 2014, shows that the police lied about what happened.  A police spokesman, described McDonald lunging at officers before shooting began; while another police statement  after the shooting said McDonald had refused to drop a knife and "continued to approach the officers." Initial police information said McDonald was killed by a single shot to the chest.
But the video shows McDonald walking down the middle of a four-lane street. He then appears to veer away from police as Officer Jason Van Dyke, who is now charged with murder, opens fire. The video seems to show McDonald with something in his hand. Prosecutors say a 3-inch blade recovered from the scene had been folded into the handle. - Pan African Newswire
Activists contend city and police department officials dragged their feet on the investigation and video release and perhaps even sought to cover up what happened.
Interestingly, the dash cam's audio did not function on any of the police vehicles - really??!!!
These are modern cameras that are set up in Chicago police cars  so audio records along with video.  So how could it be that none of the dash-cams had audio?  Hmmm...

 Now that you know, what are you - especially you in Chicago - going to do about it? 

Stay Blessed &
ECLECTICALLY BLACK
Gloria 














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