No Fair Trial In Cook Co. For Cop In Laquan McDonald Case: Motion

CHICAGO, IL — The Chicago police officer indicted in the 2014 fatal shooting of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald wants a change of venue for the legal proceedings, claiming he's incapable of receiving a fair trial in Cook County. A motion to move the murder trial had been filed March 28 by Dan Herbert, Ofc. Jason Van Dyke's lead attorney, and the 31-page document was finally unsealed Thursday, according to the Chicago Tribune.

According to Herbert's motion, "inflammatory and sensational media coverage" makes a fair trial for Van Dyke in Cook County an impossibility. In fact, the motion calls a venue change a "necessity," and it likens public remarks about Van Dyke by Mayor Rahm Emanuel and others to the equivalent of a "public execution," the Tribune reports.

Van Dyke is on trial stemming from the Oct. 20, 2014, shooting of McDonald during an incident on the South Side. Initial police reports claimed the teen was swinging a knife and lunging at Van Dyke before the officer opened fire.

Van Dyke has pleaded not guilty to six counts of first-degree murder and 16 counts of aggravated battery, a count for each time McDonald was shot. He also faces a count of official misconduct.

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: Ofc. Jason Van Dyke now faces 16 counts of aggravated battery stemming from the fatal shooting of the 17-year-old in 2014.

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.

Laquan McDonald Case: No More Police Indictments, Prosecutor Says: The grand jury investigating an alleged Chicago police cover-up in the fatal shooting of the 17-year-old has been dismissed.

Cop's Trial In Laquan McDonald Shooting To Start In Summer, Judge Says: But the judge presiding over Chicago police Ofc. Jason Van Dyke's murder trial hasn't chosen a specific date for proceedings to begin.

Laquan McDonald Case: Summer Trial Presumptuous, Lawyer Says: The lawyer for Chicago police Ofc. Jason Van Dyke said rulings still need to be made on various motions before the murder can begin.

When the motion to move Van Dyke's trial out of Cook County was filed in March, Judge Vincent Gaughan said he wanted the proceedings to begin this summer so that poor weather wouldn't be given as a reason to keep people from the courthouse. But with Thursday's unsealing of the change of venue motion, a summer start to the trial appears unlikely.

The next step in the legal process is a hearing to decide if the trial should be held in another county. That most likely won't happen until August.

More via the Chicago Tribune

Lawyer Dan Herbert (left) and his client, Chicago police Ofc. Jason Van Dyke leave the courtroom in 2015. (Photo by Zbigniew Bzdak-Pool | Getty Images News | Getty Images)