video

“finish yourself off.”: Yorkville sergeant fired, officers suspended after video reveals taunting of distressed man

Aug 24, 2018 | kimberlykaczmarek

A Yorkville police sergeant has been fired and two officers have been disciplined after one of them was recorded taunting a man and encouraging him to kill himself during a disturbance.

Police were called to an incident on Sept. 14, 2017 because a man was arguing with his mother and throwing trash in the street.

When officers arrived, the man and mother both retreated to their home and locked the door, refusing to open it.

The dashcam video picked up audio of Officer Jeffery Johnson arguing with the 44-year old man, telling him to “bring it” and saying, “you live with your mother.”

Later, as the man grabbed his own throat, Johnson is heard saying “go ahead, finish yourself off.”

Sgt. Sarah Klingel can be heard threatening to break the door down.

After an investigation that concluded Aug. 2, Klingel was fired. Johnson was given a 30-day suspension without pay. Officer Christopher Hayes, who was also on the scene, received a written warning.

More at WGN TV.

Toddler killed in road rage incident

Dec 19, 2016 | WLSAM Staff

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A 3-year-old boy was shot and killed during an apparent road rage incident in Little Rock, Arkansas when his grandmother took him shopping, police said.

CNN Videos from the Democratic National Convention Day Two (Tuesday)

Jul 27, 2016 12:50 am

Bill Clinton walked delegates through Hillary Clinton’s history in public life and their relationship during a speech at the Democratic National Convention.

The mothers of Sandra Bland, Jordan Davis, and Trayvon Martin are joined on the Democratic National Convention stage by the “Mothers of the Movement” to talk about the campaign to stop gun violence against young men and women.

During a speech at the Democratic National Convention, celebrities Lena Dunham and America Ferrara took GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump to task for his views on immigration and gender equality.

Sen. Bernie Sanders asks the Democratic National Convention to suspend the rules and officially name Hillary Clinton the Democratic nominee, making her the first female presidential nominee from one of the two major political parties.

At the Democratic National Convention, Hillary Clinton appeared via satellite to thank the delegates for making her the first female presidential nominee from a major political party.

Mayor Emanuel: Release Cop Shooting Video

Nov 20, 2015 | WLS-AM Staff

By John Dempsey, WLS News

Mayor Emanuel has decided not to appeal a court order to release the video showing a Chicago Police Officer shooting a black teen to death. The officer shot and killed 17 year old LaQuan McDonald last October, firing 16 shots into the teen’s body. On Thursday, Cook County Judge Franklin Valderama ordered Emanuel to release the police dashboard camera video, which the Mayor had resisted. A few hours after the judge’s order, Emanuel released the following statement:

“Police officers are entrusted to uphold the law, and to provide safety to our residents. In this case unfortunately, it appears an officer violated that trust at every level. As a result, the city’s Independent Police Review Authority promptly sent this case and the evidence to state and federal prosecutors who have been investigating it for almost a year. In accordance with the judge’s ruling the City will release the video by November 25, which we hope will provide prosecutors time to expeditiously bring their investigation to a conclusion so Chicago can begin to heal.”

So far the officer has not been charged with wrongdoing, but the Chicago City Council has already approved a five million dollar settlement with McDonald’s family.

Now, some in the community are concerned about possibly rioting when that video is released.

City Council Black Caucus Chairman, Sixth Ward Alderman Roderick Sawyer, told ABC 7, “I just to make sure that people remain calm, be angry, be frustrated, but work within the system”. Meanwhile, Police Union President Dean Angelo told “The Big John Howell Show” on WLS, “There is a sense of concern throughout the entire department now, probably throughout the entire city, what are the plans? What’s going to go into effect? Is this going to be an emergency or a high alert type of concern?”

So far the police department is not saying what measures it might take to prevent unrest, in the days and hours before that video is released.

Angelo says if the officer is eventually charged, release of the video will make it harder to find impartial jurors for his trial, telling WLS, “Not only is it going to put out evidence that is going to be viewed hundreds of times by a potential jury pool, but where do you find someone that doesn’t have a pre-conceived opinion of what occurred?”

However freelance journalist Brandon Smith, who filed a lawsuit to force the release of the video, says it’s past time for the public to be able to see what happened, even if prosecutors are still deciding whether to file charges against the officer. ” Videos speak a lot louder than descriptions of videos, and it’s been over a year since this incident. If there’s such a clear record of what happened, it doesn’t make sense to investigate it so long and doubt what happened”

@ 2015 WLS News