Chicago's tab for open records lawsuits climbs dramatically

CHICAGO (AP) - The $670,000 the city of Chicago paid out in 2016 to settle lawsuits alleging violations of the state's open records law was nearly five times what it paid over the previous eight years.

The Chicago Tribune (http://trib.in/2iqoFyx ) reports that 19 of the 27 cases in which there were payouts last year involved the police department. The largest single payout was $97,500, stemming from the city's legal fight over a dashboard camera video of the fatal shooting of teenager Laquan McDonald by Officer Jason Van Dyke. A judge ultimately ordered the city to release the video.

The newspaper reports that Mayor Rahm Emanuel's administration still faces 54 open records lawsuits. The city's law department says it is working to improve how it handles open records requests.

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Information from: Chicago Tribune, http://www.chicagotribune.com