Chicago officer's interview before trial sparks legal fight
Source: Associated Press
Don Babwin, Associated Press
Updated 1:43 pm CDT, Thursday, August 30, 2018
CHICAGO (AP) — Attorneys prosecuting a Chicago police officer in the 2014 death of a black teenager have asked that the officer be locked up or have his bond increased after he gave a newspaper interview about one of the nation's most infamous police shootings caught on video.
Special Prosecutor Joseph McMahon said the interview violated a judge's order forbidding Jason Van Dyke, his attorneys or law enforcement officials from discussing evidence or expected testimony in the case.
Van Dyke's lawyer, Daniel Herbert, disputed that his client's interview with the Chicago Tribune violated the longstanding order, saying Van Dyke was "very careful not to discuss evidence in the case or the shooting itself."
Instead, he said, Van Dyke was exercising his First Amendment right of free speech in the interview, in which he discussed his personal feelings, the effect of the case on his family and his belief that he is being made a political scapegoat.
Read more: https://www.chron.com/news/crime/article/Chicago-officer-s-interview-before-trial-sparks-13194108.php