Police

Family of Chicago teen shot 16 times by police awarded $5 million as FBI probes killing

City leaders have agreed to pay out $5 million dollars to the family of a teenager who was shot 16 times last fall by Chicago police

Published

10 years ago

April 16, 2015

Unheard Voices Staff

Laquan McDonald

City leaders have agreed to pay out $5 million dollars to the family of Laquan McDonald who was shot 16 times last fall by Chicago police, report the New York Times. Federal and state prosecutors said that a criminal investigation is being conducted on last year’s shooting.

The decision comes in the case of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald, who police say was wielding a three-inch knife, was shot 16 times by an officer on Oct. 20 on the city’s Southwest Side.

The unnamed officer said he was in fear for his life, but the FBI and state prosecutors are investigating his claim.

The authorities say a dashboard camera on a police squad car captured the confrontation, though the recording has not been made public.

Family of Laquan McDonald To Receive Settlement

Lawyers for McDonald’s family say he was walking away from police when he was shot and they were prepared to ask for $16 million, the Tribune notes.

The officer hasn’t been charged with a crime.

Read more at The Chicago Tribune.

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Unheard Voices Staff

Unheard Voices is an award-winning news magazine that started in 2004 as a newsletter in the Asbury Park, Neptune, and Long Branch, NJ areas to broadening into a recognized Black online media outlet. The company is one of the few outlets dedicated to covering social justice issues. They are the recipient of the NAACP Unsung Hero Award and CV Magazine's Innovator Award for Best Social Justice Communications Company.