Chicago Officer's Bond Set at $1.5 Million in Killing of Black Teen

Chicago: A judge on Monday set a $1.5 million bond for a white Chicago police officer charged with murder after a patrol car's dashboard camera video showed him shooting a black teenager 16 times.

Officer Jason Van Dyke, who appeared in shackles, must post 10 percent of the total amount. The police union president said after the hearing that union members can help Van Dyke's family meet the amount.

Last week Van Dyke was denied bail and prosecutors had asked that ruling to stand, but Van Dyke's lawyer Daniel Herbert said his client posed no flight risk. Herbert said he did not know when Van Dyke might post bond.

There have been several days of protests in Chicago following the release last Tuesday of the video, which showed Van Dyke gunning down 17-year-old Laquan McDonald in the middle of the street on Oct. 20, 2014 as he was walking away from police who had confronted him. Van Dyke, 37, was charged with first-degree murder.

The case is among several high-profile killings of unarmed black men at the hands of mainly white law enforcement officials in U.S. cities over the past two years, reigniting a national debate on race relations and police tactics and sometimes leading to violent demonstrations.

Advertisement