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Activist sentenced for finger snaps at Chicago cop's hearing

Posted July 07, 2017 7:00 am

The Associated Press

CHICAGO (AP) - A judge has given a community activist 12 months of probation for snapping his fingers at a hearing for a white Chicago police officer charged in the fatal shooting of black teenager Laquan McDonald.

The Chicago Sun-Times (http://bit.ly/2sy40em ) reports Cook County Judge Vincent Gaughan imposed the sentence Friday.

Moises Bernal snapped his fingers in approval at a May hearing when the same judge refused to dismiss first-degree murder and aggravated battery charges against Jason Van Dyke. Gaughan immediately held Bernal in contempt and he was jailed for 11 hours before posting bond. Bernal also teaches citizenship classes in Chicago.

Gaughan pledged to maintain tight control as the high-profile Van Dyke case plays out.

A video of the McDonald shooting released in 2015 prompted anger and weeks of protests in Chicago.

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Information from: Chicago Sun-Times, http://chicago.suntimes.com/

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