CHICAGO (AP) – Attorneys in the case of the ex-Chicago police officer convicted of second-degree murder and 16 counts of aggravated battery in the 2014 shooting death of black teenager Laquan McDonald have submitted written arguments on sentencing this week.
Special Prosecutor Joseph McMahon doesn’t recommend a specific sentence in a Monday filing. He walks through the state’s complex sentencing formula to say Jason Van Dyke could be sentenced to 96 years in prison Friday if the judge concludes all 16 bullets striking McDonald caused “serious bodily injury.” But he also says the sentence could be as little as 18 years.
Defense attorney Dan Herbert asks that Van Dyke get probation or receive no more than the minimum six-year sentence for aggravated battery.
The defense submitted more than 100 letters, including from Van Dyke’s two young daughters, appealing for leniency.