IF YOU SAY SO

Wife: Laquan Cop ‘Not Monster’ Some See

“He prays for Laquan.”

Chicago Police Officer Jason Van Dyke, who shot and killed black teen Laquan McDonald 16 times, “is not the monster the world now sees him as,” his wife Tiffany told reporters. “He prays for Laquan and his family. [The shooting] is not something he ever wanted to do.” McDonald’s family, including his great-uncle, the Rev. Marvin Hunter, said that while he feels compassion for Van Dyke’s family, doesn’t have sympathy for Van Dyke himself. He acted as “judge, jury and executioner,” Hunter, a family spokesman, said.The Chicago Tribune writes that the Van Dykes no longer allow their daughters to play outside and keep their curtains shut all the time. Each day has been a struggle, Tiffany told a reporter. The shooting was the first occasion on which Van Dyke discharged his weapon in the line of duty in 12 years. The 38-year-old has been suspended without pay since he was charged with first-degree murder last fall.