On Monday, State Attorney Anita Alvarez announced that Officer George Hernandez will not be charged for the fatal shooting of 25-year-old Ronald Johnson. The decision was made the same day video of the fatal shooting was released, which shows that Hernandez shot Johnson from behind.
Hernandez shot Johnson two times last year in Chicago, one week before 17-year-old Laquan McDonald was killed by Officer Jason Van Dyke. The fatal encounter occurred moments after someone opened fire on the car that Johnson and three friends were riding in. Police say Johnson emerged from the car holding a gun, and officers who arrived at the scene told him to drop it. Prosecutors claim there was a physical altercation.
But in the video, Hernandez opens fire on Johnson from behind, as the 25-year-old tries to run for his life.
Watch the video here:
#BREAKING: Chicago police release video of 2014 shooting of Ronald Johnson — https://t.co/qGm9YUdNhO pic.twitter.com/URjdlHG0Fb
— Grasswire Now (@GrasswireNow) December 7, 2015
Alvarez said she will not charge Hernandez because Johnson was carrying a gun, but the video shows Johnson was not pointing the weapon in the officers’ direction. He was simply trying to flee.
On Monday, Attorney General Loretta Lynch launched a Department of Justice investigation of the Chicago Police Department, following the release of dash cam footage that captured Laquan McDonald’s unlawful shooting. Last week, Mayor Rahm Emanuel fired Superintendent Garry McCarthy, following daily protests and calls for police accountability in light of McDonald’s shooting. Chicago residents have also demanded the resignation of Emanuel and Alvarez, who have tried to cover up police brutality in the past.