What Happens in 16 Shots?
The complete story of 16 Shots, from the first scene to the last, in 200 words (about 1 minute). Spoilers throughout.
Spoilers ahead
16 Shots uses extensive interviews, combined with news reports and scenes of Chicago, to depict the murder of Laquan McDonald and subsequent events.
On October 20, 2014, McDonald, a 17-year-old African-American, was shot to death by Chicago Police officer Jason Van Dyke. The police department initially ruled that the shooting was justifiable self-defense. More than a year later, police dashcam videos were released to the public, showing that McDonald was walking away from police officers when he was shot 16 times. There had been a cover-up of the actual events by members of the police department and various government officials. This caused widespread outrage at a time of national reexamination of the relations between police departments and minority communities. Chicago mayor Rahm Emanuel fired police commissioner Garry McCarthy, Cook County state’s attorney Anita Alvarez was voted out of office, and Emanuel himself decided not to run for reelection. Jason Van Dyke, the police officer who shot McDonald, was found guilty of second degree murder and 16 counts of aggravated battery. These events also led to an investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice, and a consent decree for a federal judge to oversee numerous reforms of the Chicago Police Department.
