Three police officers in Chicago were charged with obstruction, conspiracy, and misconduct in regards to the investigation of the shooting death of teen Laquan McDonald.
The current and former officers are accused of conspiring to cover up alleged misconduct by Officer Jason Van Dyke, who fatally shot McDonald on Oct. 20, 2014. Van Dyke was charged in 2015 of first-degree murder in the shooting, which was captured via a dash-cam video and was later released to the public, drawing outrage and protests.
Special prosecutor Patricia Brown-Holmes announced the indictments on Tuesday, saying the three officers “did more than merely obey an unofficial code of silence,” The Associated Press reported. She then accused them of lying to prevent investigators from “learning the truth.”
They were identified as Detective David March and Officers Joseph Walsh---Van Dyke’s partner---and Thomas Gaffney.
Holmes said a grand jury is continuing its investigation, the Chicago Tribune reported.
“The defendants allegedly lied about what occurred and mischaracterized the video recordings so that independent criminal investigators would not learn the truth about the killing and the public would not see the video recordings,” Holmes’ office said, CBS Chicago reported.
The dash-cam video showed Van Dyke shooting McDonald 16 times as he walked away from police while holding a knife.
Van Dyke has pleaded not guilty to murder.
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