Laquan McDonald Journalist Won't Need To Reveal Source

CHICAGO, IL — An independent journalist won't need to identify a source who pointed out incongruities between witness accounts of the fatal shooting of Laquan McDonald and the official Chicago police account. Cook County Judge Vincent Gaughan delivered his five-page ruling during a Wednesday hearing, contending lawyers for Jason Van Dyke — the Chicago police officer facing murder and aggravated battery charges after shooting the 17-year-old boy 16 times during an incident October of 2014 on the South Side— didn't provide details showing Jamie Kalven sat in on FBI interviews with eyewitnesses and passed along information to witnesses, allegations the reporter denied, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

Although he had said he would go to jail before revealing his source, Kalven told reporters after the hearing that he was relieved by Gaughan's ruling, the report stated. Kalven's reporting about the shooting appeared on the news website Slate.

In covering the shooting, Kalven was the first to call into question the Chicago Police Department's version of events of the night of Oct. 20, 2014. He revealed that a police dashcam video disputed initial officer reports that claimed McDonald was swinging a knife and lunging at Van Dyke before the officer opened fire.

In the video, McDonald is not seen as aggressively moving toward Van Dyke, and instead, he's seen walking away from Van Dyke when the officer opens fire. Officers at the scene have been accused of participating in a cover-up involving the shooting, and in June, a special grand jury indicted a detective — David March, 58, who headed up the investigation of the shooting — and two patrol officers — Joseph Walsh, 48, and Thomas Gafney, 43, Van Dyke's former partner — on conspiracy, official misconduct and obstruction of justice charges.

According to his ruling, which was passed out to reporters without the judge discussing it in court, Gaughan stated that Kalven, as a journalist, should be forced to reveal sources only in extreme cases, the Sun-Times reports. Gaughan only spoke about his decision in court by saying he struck down a request by Van Dyke's attorneys to have Kalven testify at trial, the report added.

Patch's Coverage of the Laquan McDonald Case:

5 Perspectives on '16 Shots: The Death of Laquan McDonald': A ward of the state, shot dead on a Chicago street. A teen who loved his teachers. A mayor who won't lead. Questions no one will answer.

Chicago Cop Accused Of Killing Teen Faces New Charges: Officer Jason Van Dyke now faces 16 counts of aggravated battery stemming from the fatal shooting of the 17-year-old in 2014.

Jason Van Dyke Must Attend Hearings: Judge: But the judge presiding over Officer Jason Van Dyke's murder trial vowed to beef up security at the courthouse so defendant was safe.

3 Chicago Cops Indicted In Alleged Cover-Up Of Shooting:The special prosecutor accuses the trio of doing more than obeying a "code of silence" surrounding the shooting investigation.

More Police Indictments Possible In Case: The special prosecutor says the grand jury is expected to meet at least twice by the end of October.

Accused Chicago Cop's Interview Ordered Sealed: PLUS: A look at the latest developments in the murder case surrounding the 2014 police-involved shooting that killed a 17-year-old boy.

In comments afer Wednesday's hearing, Kalven defended himself against the characterization by Van Dyke's legal team that the journalist was anti-cop, according to the Sun-Times.

"I think if you look at the consequence of the reporting, and not just my reporting in this case, it’s contributed to a moment, an opportunity in Chicago for really fundamental change, [in] police reform and, I think, even more broadly a kind of social change around basic issues of race," he said. "If that’s anti-police reporting, I really don’t know what to say."

More via the Chicago Sun-Times

Image taken from Chicago police dashboard camera video showing the shooting of Laquan McDonald. (Image via Patch archive)