XPost: alt.gossip.celebrities, sac.general, alt.politics.democrats.d
XPost: talk.politics.guns
The former Chicago police officer who was sentenced to 81 months
in prison for the 2014 killing of teenager Laquan McDonald was
assaulted in his cell at a Connecticut prison, his wife said
Thursday.
Jason Van Dyke was transferred earlier this month to a federal
prison in Danbury, Conn. and was placed in general population,
where he was assaulted hours after arriving, his wife and
lawyers said during a news conference.
“We are all petrified and in fear for Jason’s life,” his wife,
Tiffany Van Dyke, originally told the Sun-Times on Wednesday.
“Jason just wants to serve his sentence. He does not want any
trouble. I hope prison officials will take steps to rectify this
right away. He never should have been in the general population.”
ATTORNEY GENERAL, PROSECUTORS SEEK HARSHER SENTENCE IN LAQUAN
MCDONALD CASE
Van Dyke was being held at the Rock Island County Jail in Rock
Island, Illinois, about 150 miles west of Chicago, before the
move to the low-security Connecticut prison. County authorities
previously told the Associated Press he was kept out of the
Illinois jail's general population.
In this Jan. 18, 2019 file photo, former Chicago police Officer
Jason Van Dyke attends his sentencing hearing at the Leighton
Criminal Court Building in Chicago, for the 2014 shooting of
Laquan McDonald.
But after being transferred on Feb. 5, Van Dyke sustained
injuries to hsi head and face, according to his attorneys, who
added that he is not in lockdown 23 hours a day.
Tiffany Van Dyke told reporters at a news conference she has not
been able to speak to her husband, and pleaded for his safety.
"My number one fear is for my husband's safety," she told
reporters. "I am fearful for his life every single day."
Transferring prisoners from an Illinois jail to a federal
facility out of a state has happened before, according to the
Sun-Times. Infamous former cop Drew Peterson, convicted of
murdering his third-wife in addition to hiring someone to kill
the Will County state's attorney, was sent to a federal prison
in Indiana in 2017.
An emotional Tiffany Van Dyke speaks during a news conference on
Thursday.
His attorney's said they were alerted to the attack from a
confidential phone call by someone who works at the prison.
"He was led like a lamb to slaughter," attorney Tammy Wendt told
reporters.
Tiffany Van Dyke added that she is demanding why he was
transferred to a federal facility, which was "endangered him
greatly" and that the attack was a "race issue."
"They put my husband in a setting to be harmed because of the
fact that he is a white man who harmed a black gentleman in the
line of duty," she said.
In this Friday, Jan. 18, 2019 file photo, Tiffany Van Dyke, wife
of former Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke, attends his
sentencing hearing at the Leighton Criminal Court Building, in
Chicago, for the 2014 shooting of Laquan McDonald.
Van Dyke's family said they remain in fear for the ex-cop's life.
"The next time this could happen they could kill him," she said.
"I cannot bury my husband,"
CHICAGO COP GETS 81-MONTH SENTENCE IN LAQUAN MCDONALD MURDER
The former Chicago cop was found guilty in October of second-
degree murder and 16 counts of aggravated battery for the
shooting death of Laquan McDonald. Grainy dashcam footage of him
shooting the black teenager 16 times in less than 30 seconds
stoked outrage, polarized Chicago and garnered national
attention over how best to police minority communities.
Last month he was sentenced to six years and nine months in
prison but will likely serve only about three years, with credit
for good behavior. During sentencing, Van Dyke said he prayed
"daily for the soul of Laquan McDonald."
Prosecutors, however, called up several black motorists who
testified that Van Dyke had a history of using racial slurs and
excessive force during traffic stops in the years before the
2014 shooting.
CLICK HERE FOR THE FOX NEWS APP
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul on Monday asked the
state's highest court to review the sentencing of the ex-cop,
claiming that Judge Vincent Gaughan did not properly apply the
law.
Fox News' Barnini Chakraborty and The Associated Press
contributed to this report.
https://www.foxnews.com/us/wife-says-chicago-officer-assaulted- in-connecticut-prison
--- SoupGate-Win32 v1.05
* Origin: fsxNet Usenet Gateway (21:1/5)