November 24, 2015

Sixteen shots. In an instant, they transformed a CPD claim of self-defense against a Black 17-year-old into what eventually would be deemed second-degree murder. Police brutality had been documented in Chicago before, but this was different. The killing — and what many saw as an attempted cover-up — cost Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy his job, prompted a federal investigation and reform mandates, gave oxygen to a new generation of protesters, and arguably cut short the tenure of Mayor Rahm Emanuel.