Chicago Cop Not Charged in Black Man’s Shooting Death Caught on Tape
By Associated Press
December 7, 2015 | 1:16pm
A Chicago police officer will not be charged in the fatal shooting of a black man in an incident captured by a squad car’s dashcam.
Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez announced Monday that she’s not charging Officer George Hernandez in the shooting death of Ronald Johnson III in October 2014. Less than two weeks ago, another officer was charged in the fatal shooting of a black man recorded by a squad car dashcam.
Last month, Alvarez charged Jason Van Dyke with first-degree murder in the death of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald, who was shot 16 times.
Police say the 25-year-old Johnson pointed a gun at officers before Hernandez shot him in the back. Johnson’s mother, who has been pressing the city to release the video, says it shows her son was running away from officers when he was shot.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel says the video should be released this week.
No charges for Chicago cop in Ronald Johnson shooting death; lawyer blasts decision
Steve Schmadeke and Jason MeisnerContact Reporters
Chicago Tribune
The scene on the grainy police dash-cam video unfolds in just seconds.
Responding to a call of shots fired, Chicago police Officer George Hernandez jumps out of his unmarked squad car and gives chase to a suspect running toward Washington Park. The officer takes four steps, arms extended, and opens fire at the back of Ronald Johnson III, the muzzle of his gun flashing five times in the dark as Johnson runs out of view of the camera and collapses.
The footage of Johnson's October 2014 killing was released to the public Monday, less than two weeks after a dash-cam video of Laquan McDonald's shooting was broadcast around the world. Occurring just eight days apart, the two videos have striking similarities, each depicting an officer opening fire within seconds of arriving at the scene and mysteriously lacking audio.
But while Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez brought a first-degree murder charge against Officer Jason Van Dyke in the McDonald case, she announced on Monday that no charges would be filed in Johnson's shooting because of one key difference: The evidence, she said, showed Johnson was carrying a gun when he was shot.
At a packed news conference, Alvarez said she had to view what happened that night through the eyes of a "reasonable officer" who was trying to protect himself or others from harm when he opened fire.
"Police officers are often forced to make split-second judgments in circumstances that are tense, uncertain and rapidly evolving about the amount of force that is necessary in any particular situation," Alvarez said.
But Michael Oppenheimer, the attorney for Johnson's family, blasted that analysis, alleging the state's attorney's office had failed to interview any of the officers involved in the incident, including Hernandez, relying instead on a flawed investigation by the Independent Police Review Authority.
He reiterated claims that the gun was planted by police who tailored their statements to fit what was on the video so the shooting would be justified.
"This is a joke," said Oppenheimer, who has filed a wrongful death lawsuit that's pending in federal court. "It is the blind leading the blind."
Johnson's mother, Dorothy Holmes, told reporters she was upset with Alvarez's decision and hoped a special prosecutor would be appointed to do a more thorough investigation.
"I want (Hernandez) charged with murder," Holmes said.
The developments came as the fallout from the McDonald killing continued for a third week. The scandal has led to the resignations of police Superintendent Garry McCarthy and IPRA chief investigator Scott Ando, and on Monday the U.S. Justice Department announced it was launching a wide-ranging civil rights investigation into the use of force by Chicago police.
As in McDonald's case, the city had fought for more than a year to keep the dash-cam video of Johnson's killing from being released to the public, citing ongoing investigations. But after a Cook County judge overseeing an open records lawsuit forced the release of the McDonald video on Nov. 24, Emanuel said last week his administration would no longer contest a similar suit filed in the Johnson case.
The pressure for transparency was evident at Alvarez's 75-minute news conference, where she took the unprecedented step of publicly outlining in great detail her office's decision not to file charges in Johnson's case.
During the discussion, Assistant State's Attorney Lynn McCarthy used a carefully prepared PowerPoint presentation that incorporated the dash-cam video as well as 911 calls and police radio traffic to walk reporters through what happened the night of the shooting.
According to prosecutors, early on Oct. 12, 2014, Johnson, 25, and three acquaintances had left a party at an apartment near 53rd Street and King Drive when the back window of their Chevrolet was shot out by a gunman. The driver, who gave a sworn statement to investigators, said he heard what sounded like a semi-automatic handgun being cocked in the back seat where Johnson was sitting, and police later found a bullet on the car seat matching Johnson's gun, prosecutors said.
Instead of calling 911, the driver steered the car back to the scene of the shooting and everyone got out, McCarthy said. Meanwhile, police responding to multiple calls of shots fired saw Johnson, whose clothing matched a description read over police radios, running east on 53rd with a gun in his right hand, and several officers began pursuing him.
After Johnson turned south onto King Drive, he was confronted by another officer who holstered his gun and tried to arrest him, McCarthy said. A scuffle ensued, and Johnson broke free as the officer fell to the ground, according to prosecutors. At that moment, Hernandez arrived in an unmarked squad car heading south on King Drive, saw the scuffle and got out with his weapon drawn.
The video showed Hernandez open fire about two seconds after exiting his car as Johnson ran toward the park with his back to the officers as another police SUV attempted to cut off his path. Two of the five shots struck Johnson, who fell face-first into a grassy area in the parkway east of King Drive.
Hernandez told investigators Johnson was still breathing when he ran up and found a gun in his right hand, McCarthy said. The officer said he took the gun out of Johnson's hand and put it in his waistband because Johnson still posed a threat and an "angry crowd" was gathering. The 9 mm gun had Johnson's DNA on it and was loaded with 12 live rounds, the prosecutor said.
The day of the shooting, the Police Department's media affairs office put out an official statement that Johnson had turned and pointed a gun at officers as he ran, prompting Hernandez to fire in fear of his life.
But Oppenheimer said several officers who gave depositions in the wrongful death suit said they were allowed to watch the dash-cam video back at Area Central police headquarters before any official reports were written. After viewing the video and seeing that Johnson had never turned, detectives filed a case report stating that Hernandez feared Johnson could have turned and fire shots at any moment.
In the report, which Oppenheimer presented on a large poster board at his own news conference, Hernandez said Johnson could have gotten a shot off "by turning his body and firing at Hernandez or other pursuing officers, or by firing back over his shoulder while still running forward, and/or by firing backward during the rearward arm swing of his forward running motion."
Oppenheimer said the report was clearly written in legal language that was tailored to match what was in the video.
"This is a cover-up from the beginning," he said.
Oppenheimer also played a portion of the audio from Hernandez's recorded deposition, taken a month ago as part of the federal lawsuit, in which the officer said he had never been contacted by Alvarez's office. The fact that Hernandez freely answered questions under oath for more than six hours indicates he knew he was free of any criminal probe, Oppenheimer said.
"How in the world does he know he's not going to be indicted unless someone in Alvarez's office told him?" the attorney said.
The story given by police that night has other holes as well, Oppenheimer said. The driver of the Chevrolet testified in his deposition that detectives had told him they found a gun on Johnson, and he went along with the story to save his own skin.
"I really just didn't want to be pinned with a gun," the witness, identified only as Individual A, said in his deposition, according to a transcript provided by Oppenheimer. "... He was dead already. There's nothing I can get in trouble for by saying this is what occurred."
In a statement to the Tribune on Monday afternoon, Sally Daly, a spokeswoman for Alvarez, said there was no evidence the driver's testimony was coerced. In fact, he gave a video recorded statement to a Cook County assistant state's attorney as well as an audiotaped statement under oath to IPRA investigators in which he stated he'd heard a sound consistent with a gun being cocked or racked by Johnson in the back seat, Daly said.
The gun found in Johnson's hand was linked to an unsolved 2013 shooting in the Englewood police district, according to prosecutors.
Cook County court records show Johnson had several run-ins with police over the years but no felony convictions. In 2008, he was charged with assaulting a police officer, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count and received court supervision. In 2011, he was arrested after he allegedly threatened to shoot his girlfriend. Records show he later pleaded guilty to misdemeanor domestic battery.
According to Alvarez, the video of the shooting was forwarded to her office by IPRA for review shortly after the incident. She shared a copy with the FBI, which declined to take part in the investigation but did assist in enhancing portions of the video in a laboratory to try to establish visual proof that Johnson was holding a gun in the seconds before he was shot.
Prosecutors acknowledged that the dash-cam video of Johnson's shooting does not conclusively show him holding a pistol, but Alvarez she said she believes an object in his hand appears to be a gun.
"What we've been seeing in these particular cases is they're not Hollywood-quality videos," she said. "They're grainy, it's dark, it's blurry, it happens so fast."
She said unlike the McDonald case, which was investigated by the FBI, her office in this case had to rely on IPRA for statements that came in "piecemeal" over many months. Alvarez said her office in April passed along to IPRA the names of two people who Johnson's family thought should be interviewed, but the agency only talked to them within the last two weeks.
"I personally would've liked to have been able to wrap this (Johnson) case up … much earlier," she said.
December 7, 2015 | 1:16pm
A Chicago police officer will not be charged in the fatal shooting of a black man in an incident captured by a squad car’s dashcam.
Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez announced Monday that she’s not charging Officer George Hernandez in the shooting death of Ronald Johnson III in October 2014. Less than two weeks ago, another officer was charged in the fatal shooting of a black man recorded by a squad car dashcam.
Last month, Alvarez charged Jason Van Dyke with first-degree murder in the death of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald, who was shot 16 times.
Police say the 25-year-old Johnson pointed a gun at officers before Hernandez shot him in the back. Johnson’s mother, who has been pressing the city to release the video, says it shows her son was running away from officers when he was shot.
Mayor Rahm Emanuel says the video should be released this week.
No charges for Chicago cop in Ronald Johnson shooting death; lawyer blasts decision
Steve Schmadeke and Jason MeisnerContact Reporters
Chicago Tribune
The scene on the grainy police dash-cam video unfolds in just seconds.
Responding to a call of shots fired, Chicago police Officer George Hernandez jumps out of his unmarked squad car and gives chase to a suspect running toward Washington Park. The officer takes four steps, arms extended, and opens fire at the back of Ronald Johnson III, the muzzle of his gun flashing five times in the dark as Johnson runs out of view of the camera and collapses.
The footage of Johnson's October 2014 killing was released to the public Monday, less than two weeks after a dash-cam video of Laquan McDonald's shooting was broadcast around the world. Occurring just eight days apart, the two videos have striking similarities, each depicting an officer opening fire within seconds of arriving at the scene and mysteriously lacking audio.
But while Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez brought a first-degree murder charge against Officer Jason Van Dyke in the McDonald case, she announced on Monday that no charges would be filed in Johnson's shooting because of one key difference: The evidence, she said, showed Johnson was carrying a gun when he was shot.
At a packed news conference, Alvarez said she had to view what happened that night through the eyes of a "reasonable officer" who was trying to protect himself or others from harm when he opened fire.
"Police officers are often forced to make split-second judgments in circumstances that are tense, uncertain and rapidly evolving about the amount of force that is necessary in any particular situation," Alvarez said.
But Michael Oppenheimer, the attorney for Johnson's family, blasted that analysis, alleging the state's attorney's office had failed to interview any of the officers involved in the incident, including Hernandez, relying instead on a flawed investigation by the Independent Police Review Authority.
He reiterated claims that the gun was planted by police who tailored their statements to fit what was on the video so the shooting would be justified.
"This is a joke," said Oppenheimer, who has filed a wrongful death lawsuit that's pending in federal court. "It is the blind leading the blind."
Johnson's mother, Dorothy Holmes, told reporters she was upset with Alvarez's decision and hoped a special prosecutor would be appointed to do a more thorough investigation.
"I want (Hernandez) charged with murder," Holmes said.
The developments came as the fallout from the McDonald killing continued for a third week. The scandal has led to the resignations of police Superintendent Garry McCarthy and IPRA chief investigator Scott Ando, and on Monday the U.S. Justice Department announced it was launching a wide-ranging civil rights investigation into the use of force by Chicago police.
As in McDonald's case, the city had fought for more than a year to keep the dash-cam video of Johnson's killing from being released to the public, citing ongoing investigations. But after a Cook County judge overseeing an open records lawsuit forced the release of the McDonald video on Nov. 24, Emanuel said last week his administration would no longer contest a similar suit filed in the Johnson case.
The pressure for transparency was evident at Alvarez's 75-minute news conference, where she took the unprecedented step of publicly outlining in great detail her office's decision not to file charges in Johnson's case.
During the discussion, Assistant State's Attorney Lynn McCarthy used a carefully prepared PowerPoint presentation that incorporated the dash-cam video as well as 911 calls and police radio traffic to walk reporters through what happened the night of the shooting.
According to prosecutors, early on Oct. 12, 2014, Johnson, 25, and three acquaintances had left a party at an apartment near 53rd Street and King Drive when the back window of their Chevrolet was shot out by a gunman. The driver, who gave a sworn statement to investigators, said he heard what sounded like a semi-automatic handgun being cocked in the back seat where Johnson was sitting, and police later found a bullet on the car seat matching Johnson's gun, prosecutors said.
Instead of calling 911, the driver steered the car back to the scene of the shooting and everyone got out, McCarthy said. Meanwhile, police responding to multiple calls of shots fired saw Johnson, whose clothing matched a description read over police radios, running east on 53rd with a gun in his right hand, and several officers began pursuing him.
After Johnson turned south onto King Drive, he was confronted by another officer who holstered his gun and tried to arrest him, McCarthy said. A scuffle ensued, and Johnson broke free as the officer fell to the ground, according to prosecutors. At that moment, Hernandez arrived in an unmarked squad car heading south on King Drive, saw the scuffle and got out with his weapon drawn.
The video showed Hernandez open fire about two seconds after exiting his car as Johnson ran toward the park with his back to the officers as another police SUV attempted to cut off his path. Two of the five shots struck Johnson, who fell face-first into a grassy area in the parkway east of King Drive.
Hernandez told investigators Johnson was still breathing when he ran up and found a gun in his right hand, McCarthy said. The officer said he took the gun out of Johnson's hand and put it in his waistband because Johnson still posed a threat and an "angry crowd" was gathering. The 9 mm gun had Johnson's DNA on it and was loaded with 12 live rounds, the prosecutor said.
The day of the shooting, the Police Department's media affairs office put out an official statement that Johnson had turned and pointed a gun at officers as he ran, prompting Hernandez to fire in fear of his life.
But Oppenheimer said several officers who gave depositions in the wrongful death suit said they were allowed to watch the dash-cam video back at Area Central police headquarters before any official reports were written. After viewing the video and seeing that Johnson had never turned, detectives filed a case report stating that Hernandez feared Johnson could have turned and fire shots at any moment.
In the report, which Oppenheimer presented on a large poster board at his own news conference, Hernandez said Johnson could have gotten a shot off "by turning his body and firing at Hernandez or other pursuing officers, or by firing back over his shoulder while still running forward, and/or by firing backward during the rearward arm swing of his forward running motion."
Oppenheimer said the report was clearly written in legal language that was tailored to match what was in the video.
"This is a cover-up from the beginning," he said.
Oppenheimer also played a portion of the audio from Hernandez's recorded deposition, taken a month ago as part of the federal lawsuit, in which the officer said he had never been contacted by Alvarez's office. The fact that Hernandez freely answered questions under oath for more than six hours indicates he knew he was free of any criminal probe, Oppenheimer said.
"How in the world does he know he's not going to be indicted unless someone in Alvarez's office told him?" the attorney said.
The story given by police that night has other holes as well, Oppenheimer said. The driver of the Chevrolet testified in his deposition that detectives had told him they found a gun on Johnson, and he went along with the story to save his own skin.
"I really just didn't want to be pinned with a gun," the witness, identified only as Individual A, said in his deposition, according to a transcript provided by Oppenheimer. "... He was dead already. There's nothing I can get in trouble for by saying this is what occurred."
In a statement to the Tribune on Monday afternoon, Sally Daly, a spokeswoman for Alvarez, said there was no evidence the driver's testimony was coerced. In fact, he gave a video recorded statement to a Cook County assistant state's attorney as well as an audiotaped statement under oath to IPRA investigators in which he stated he'd heard a sound consistent with a gun being cocked or racked by Johnson in the back seat, Daly said.
The gun found in Johnson's hand was linked to an unsolved 2013 shooting in the Englewood police district, according to prosecutors.
Cook County court records show Johnson had several run-ins with police over the years but no felony convictions. In 2008, he was charged with assaulting a police officer, pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count and received court supervision. In 2011, he was arrested after he allegedly threatened to shoot his girlfriend. Records show he later pleaded guilty to misdemeanor domestic battery.
According to Alvarez, the video of the shooting was forwarded to her office by IPRA for review shortly after the incident. She shared a copy with the FBI, which declined to take part in the investigation but did assist in enhancing portions of the video in a laboratory to try to establish visual proof that Johnson was holding a gun in the seconds before he was shot.
Prosecutors acknowledged that the dash-cam video of Johnson's shooting does not conclusively show him holding a pistol, but Alvarez she said she believes an object in his hand appears to be a gun.
"What we've been seeing in these particular cases is they're not Hollywood-quality videos," she said. "They're grainy, it's dark, it's blurry, it happens so fast."
She said unlike the McDonald case, which was investigated by the FBI, her office in this case had to rely on IPRA for statements that came in "piecemeal" over many months. Alvarez said her office in April passed along to IPRA the names of two people who Johnson's family thought should be interviewed, but the agency only talked to them within the last two weeks.
"I personally would've liked to have been able to wrap this (Johnson) case up … much earlier," she said.
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