The defendant doesn't have to present any evidence and you can't find you guilty

unless the state proves beyond a reasonable doubt that he's guilty. What happened to Lequon

McDonald was a tragedy. It's not a murder. Provide Jason Van Dyke

the presumption that he's entitled to, and don't allow the state to add another

tragic chapter to this story.

From W.B.E.Z. Chicago in the Chicago Tribune, this is 16 Shots, the police shooting of

Lacwan McDonald. I'm Jen White. This week jurors heard testimony from witnesses called by Jason Van Dyke's attorneys.

With most of the defense presented, a big question is whether Van Dyke's team has made a convincing case to jurors,

or if the officer himself will need to take the

stand. The tribunes Stacy St. Clair and Megan Cropo have been digging into that

question and you two have been asking attorneys and legal experts about this the past few days.

Stacey, did the people you talk to have an opinion about how well the defense has presented its case?

Yeah, I think the people that we spoke with thought the defense, you know, had presented a solid case.

They praised the animated video, which for the first time sort of showed the shooting from what is reported to be Jason

Van Dyke's perspective and they thought the expert witnesses were strong but

almost across the board they said if Jason Van Dyke wants to you know walk out of that court the And what we heard from just Van Dyke's attorneys will weigh when they're trying to decide

if he should testify on his own behalf.

Well, what we heard from just about everyone,

everyone noted that this is a self-defense and in a self defense case it is really

really difficult to get an acquittal without the person getting on the stand saying

this is what went through my head at this time, here is why this was justified.

Here's why it was self-defense.

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