Protests are expected Thursday after news broke that the Chicago police officer charged with Laquan McDonald’s murder has been hired by the Fraternal Order of Police. NBC 5's Christian Farr reports. (Published Thursday, March 31, 2016) 
 
 Protests are expected Thursday after news broke that the Chicago police officer charged in the death of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald has been hired by the police union as a janitor and "jack-of-all-trades." 
 
 Officer Jason Van Dyke now makes $12 an hour at the Fraternal Order of Police hall in the city’s West Loop, union president Dean Angelo told the Chicago Sun-Times Wednesday evening. 
 
 In a statement Thursday, the union said it reached a decision "weeks ago" to "assist the Van Dyke family." 
 
 "Due to the notoriety of the incident, the on-going threats of harm and intimidation and other issues caused him to become completely unemployable," Angelo said in a statement. "Furthermore, after several threats against the safety of his spouse and her clients his wife was forced to shut down her family-run business; resulting in zero household income." 
 
 Angelo added that it is not the first time the union has hired officers "forced into a no pay status" and said the decision was based on the "sustenance needs of a police officer and his family." 
 
 "For anyone to believe that the Lodge entered into this arrangement without consideration and forethought is improper and short sighted," the statement read. "Accuracy under these circumstances is paramount to truly grasping the significance to the decision made." 
 
 Over the past several months, Van Dyke has appeared in court numerous times to face a judge on first-degree murder charges stemming from the October 2014 shooting. Van Dyke is accused of firing 16 shots at McDonald, who was seen on surveillance video walking away from police. 
 
 Van Dyke has pleaded not guilty and his attorney has requested a change of venue, arguing it's impossible for his client to have a fair trial in Cook County. 
 
 Officer Jason Van Dyke Hired by Police Union 
 
 The officer charged with first-degree murder in the killing of 17-year-old Laquan McDonald got a new job with the police union. NBC 5's Emily Florez reports. (Published Thursday, March 31, 2016) 
 
 Already there has been heavy pushback against Van Dyke's new role. Father Michael Pfleger, a Roman Catholic priest and social activist, took to Facebook late Wednesday after news of the hiring broke. His heated post calling the move a "disgrace" and arguing that every union member should demand he be fired garnered more than 1,000 shares in just 10 hours. 
 
 "The Police Union says to Chicago...we don't give a damn what he did, what you think, he is one of ours, and we are going to take care of him," he wrote. 
 
 Other activists followed suit, planning demonstrations for outside the FOP at both noon and 6:30 p.m. 
 
 "Officers under that uniform are regular people," activist Ja'mal Green said at the noon protest. "If I killed someone, I wouldn't get bail, I wouldn't get bail. If I killed someone I don't have a union to make sure that I'm employed." 
 
 Some groups called for Van Dyke to be fired immediately and for the union to issue an apology. 
 
 "Chicago’s going to get tired of doing these marches and being peaceful," Green said. "We have been peaceful over the last four months, we have made statement and we have made change but at the end of the day the residents are tired of these types of decisions, getting slapped in the face." 
 
 Soon after, protesters were seen trying to enter the FOP office, but a line of police officers blocked the entrance. 
 
 "The F.O.P. just declared war with the people of Chicago," wrote Jedidiah Brown. "The ultimate slap in the face is to hire a man who shot a child sixteen times." 
 
 Prosecutor Bill Delaney had asked that Van Dyke remain held without bond on Nov. 30, 2015, but the judge rejected that, saying everyone is presumed innocent. He set Van Dyke’s bail at $1.5 million. Five hours later, Van Dyke posted bond and walked out of jail. 
 
 Van Dyke is currently stripped of his police powers and is on unpaid status. His new job is considered to be at a level slightly higher than that of a typical security guard, according to the Sun-Times. 
 
 "He might be on the roof, he might be in the office, he does anything we need," Angelo told the newspaper, adding that the hiring of Van Dyke is not an unprecedented move. 
 
 "We’ve probably had 100 people in no-pay status who we got jobs or hired at the hall," he told the Sun-Times. "This is nothing new." 
 
 In an interview with The Associated Press, Angelo said Van Dyke's suspension has been a "very difficult situation, financially" for the husband and father, adding that the union would do the same for any CPD officer. 
 
 Van Dyke had been turned down for all other jobs, Angelo said, and his wife's business had to close its doors due to an onslaught of threats against the officer and his family. ||||| Police union hiring of Jason Van Dyke sparks outrage 
 
 Jason Van Dyke — the white Chicago cop charged with murder after firing 16 shots into a knife-wielding black teenager in 2014 — works for the Fraternal Order of Police, the union president confirmed Wednesday night. 
 
 WFLD-Channel 32 first reported Wednesday night that Van Dyke was working at the FOP hall in the West Loop because he couldn’t find another job. 
 
 The fatal shooting of Laquan McDonald prompted a U.S. Justice Department investigation of the Chicago Police Department — and the city’s release of a video of the shooting in November led to the firing of police Supt. Garry McCarthy on Dec. 1. 
 
 Dean Angelo, president of the Fraternal Order of Police, said he decided to hire Van Dyke after receiving a call from the Chicago Sun-Times several weeks ago asking whether the officer was working for the union. 
 
 At the time, Angelo said that Van Dyke wasn’t working for the FOP. The Sun-Times made the inquiry after hearing from former FOP officials who thought Van Dyke was working for the union and were opposed to the arrangement. 
 
 On Wednesday night, Angelo said he then considered the idea and decided to give Van Dyke a job. 
 
 Van Dyke, who is stripped of his police powers and is on unpaid status, makes $12 an hour from the FOP — slightly above what a typical unarmed security guard is paid — to be a jack-of-all-trades for the union. 
 
 “He might be on the roof, he might be in the office, he does anything we need,” Angelo said. 
 
 Angelo said it’s not unprecedented. 
 
 “We’ve probably had 100 people in no-pay status who we got jobs or hired at the hall. This is nothing new,” he said. 
 
 Angelo said one of those officers was Serena Daniels, who was stripped of her police powers and was eventually fired after fatally shooting LaTanya Haggerty, an unarmed passenger in a car, in 1999. 
 
 The FOP’s move drew quick criticism and sparked promises of protests. 
 
 The Rev. Michael Pfleger blasted the move, saying in part on a Facebook post: “The Police Union says to Chicago we don’t give a Damn what he did or what you think he is one of ours, and we are going to take care of him . . . ” 
 
 The post was shared by more than 1,000 people by early Thursday morning. ||||| FILE - In this March 23, 2016 file photo, Chicago Police officer Jason Van Dyke, charged with murder in the 2014 videotaped shooting death of black teenager Laquan McDonald, walks in a courtroom during... (Associated Press) 
 
 FILE - In this March 23, 2016 file photo, Chicago Police officer Jason Van Dyke, charged with murder in the 2014 videotaped shooting death of black teenager Laquan McDonald, walks in a courtroom during... (Associated Press) 
 
 CHICAGO (AP) — A white Chicago police officer charged with murder in the shooting of a black teenager has been hired to work as a janitor for the city's police union as he awaits trial, the union president said Thursday. 
 
 Dean Angelo, president of the Fraternal Order of Police Chicago, says the union hired Jason Van Dyke about three weeks ago. Van Dyke is accused of shooting 17-year-old Laquan McDonald 16 times in 2014. The shooting was captured on squad-car video and has prompted investigations, including a federal civil rights probe of the Chicago Police Department. Van Dykes has been suspended from the department without pay. 
 
 The union would do the same for any Chicago officer and have hired dozens of people who are in no-pay status, Angelo said. 
 
 "This officer is in a very difficult situation financially. He has a family and we would do it for anybody that works as a Chicago Police officer," Angelo said. 
 
 Van Dyke does various tasks, Angelo said. 
 
 "He might be on the roof, he might be in the office, he does anything we need," Angelo said. 
 
 Van Dyke has lost other jobs due to publicity and that threats closed his wife's business, the union said. Van Dyke's attorney last week asked court officials to let the officer not attend hearings because he has received threats of violence and death when he comes to court. ||||| Video of a Chicago Police officer firing 16 shots at 17-year-old Laquan McDonald touched off demonstrations across the city but the images were not enough for a Cook County judge to order the officer held without bail pending trial. 
 
 Officer Jason Van Dyke had been in custody since turning himself in last Tuesday to face first-degree murder charges. Judge Donald Panarese Jr. said he would not set bail for the veteran officer until he had watched squad car video that prosecutors said showed Van Dyke firing 16 shots at the teen, most of them as McDonald lay slumped on the ground. 
 
 Panarese sat silently at the front of the packed courtroom Monday, leaning his head on his fist as he watched a few minutes of silent, grainy dashcam video playing on a laptop computer. 
 
 Panarese was apparently watching the video for the first time, and he asked Assistant State’s Attorney William Delaney if there was any sound on the recording. 
 
 “There’s no audio, judge,” Delaney said. 
 
 “The law gives a presumption of innocence,” Panarese said after setting Van Dyke’s bail at $1.5 million. 
 
 Four hours later, the officer walked out of Cook County Jail and past a throng of reporters and protesters after posting $150,000 bond, the 10 percent of the bail amount required to secure his release. 
 
 Van Dyke is scheduled to be back in court on Dec. 18. 
 
 Van Dyke was led into the courtroom in wrist and ankle chains and surrounded by correctional officers. A handful of protesters seated in the glass-walled courtroom gallery rose to their feet as the officer stood before the judge. The group, apparently mishearing Panarese and thinking the judge had denied bail, cheered before being ordered by sheriff’s deputies to clear the room. 
 
 “There’s good cops out there, but these crooked ones, they got to get locked up,” one woman shouted during a break as prosecutors cued up the video on Panarese’s laptop. 
 
 Late Monday, the mayor’s office announced plans to create a “Task Force on Police Accountability.” 
 
 “The task force will review the system of accountability, oversight and training that is currently in place for Chicago’s police officers,” according to a statement from the mayor’s office. 
 
 The mayor’s panel — “actively engaging a range of community members” — is expected to present recommendations to the mayor and the City Council by March 31, 2016. More details were expected Tuesday. 
 
 The dashcam video of the shooting on Oct. 20, 2014, was made public last week just a few hours after the officer was charged. In the days since, hundreds of demonstrators have rallied to mostly peaceful protests across the city, including demonstrations that blocked shoppers from stores on Michigan Avenue as holiday shopping season kicked off Friday. 
 
 Ten people were arrested Monday at what police called a “small gathering” outside City Hall that took place around the time of Van Dyke’s hearing at the Leighton Criminal Court building. 
 
 On Monday evening, about 150 people gathered for a largely peaceful demonstration outside Chicago Police headquarters at 35th and Michigan. 
 
 Activists, pastors from across the city and other city residents 
 
 called for Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy to resign, among other things. They voiced the now familiar chant: “Sixteen shots!” and held up signs, one of which read, “Prosecute all criminal cops.” 
 
 At one point, activist Jedidiah Brown, holding a heavy chain, made his way to the front doors of the building. He said he wanted to chain the doors shut. 
 
 “That building is full of filth and corruption, and we want the 
 
 building shut down,” Brown said. 
 
 Police pulled Brown aside and persuaded him to back down. 
 
 In the background, a woman who identified herself as Sister Shannon shouted repeatedly, “Forgive them, Lord, for they know not what they do!” 
 
 Van Dyke had been on desk duty until the charges were announced last week and has since been placed on “no-pay status” by the police department. 
 
 Fraternal Order of Police President Dean Angelo Sr., who attended the hearing Monday, said the union does not post bond for officers facing charges but had encouraged members to donate money toward Van Dyke’s bond. 
 
 Angelo, whose union represents more than 8,000 Chicago Police officers, said he had watched the dashcam video and that McDonald “squared his shoulders” toward the officers before Van Dyke opened fire. 
 
 Prosecutors have said McDonald was walking away from police on Pulaski Road near 41st Street and was 10 feet away from Van Dyke when the officer fired the first of 16 shots from his 9mm pistol. Van Dyke emptied his magazine in about 15 seconds, with most of the shots fired after McDonald had fallen to the pavement. 
 
 Police had been following McDonald for several blocks after receiving a report that the teen was breaking into trucks parked on a lot at 41st Street and Kildare Avenue. 
 
 The teen had PCP in his system, and officers said he had a “glazed look” as he jogged away from officers and ignored their commands. McDonald was holding a knife and had slashed the tire of a squad car that had tried to hem him in near the intersection of 41st Street and Pulaski Road. 
 
 Van Dyke was only at the scene for 30 seconds, and he was outside his vehicle for about 6 seconds when he started shooting, prosecutors said. None of the other officers at the scene fired a shot. 
 
 Police officials said at the time of the shooting that McDonald had been moving toward the officers when he was shot, a claim that appears not to jibe with video. 
 
 Angelo said Monday it appeared McDonald “squared his shoulders” toward the officers when Van Dyke started shooting. 
 
 “I think Officer Van Dyke stepped into training mode and takes action that he believed at that time was justified,” Angelo said. 
 
 “We don’t get an Officer Van Dyke view of that incident. There is a moment when the individual with the knife squares his shoulder at the officer and I believe, without the sound, that is the moment when the shooting starts,” he said. 
 
 Outside the courtroom, Van Dyke’s attorney, Daniel Herbert, told reporters the video appeared damning, but he said the dashboard camera did not capture the entire event. 
 
 “When you see the video alone it does not seem like a justifiable shooting,” he said. But he added that “we’re not going to try this case in the media. . . . There’s certain things that I know that, quite frankly, no one else knows.” 
 
 Contributing: Rummana Hussain, Stefano Esposito, Mitch Dudek, Fran Spielman
– Jason Van Dyke, the white Chicago police officer charged with first-degree murder in the shooting death of black teen Laquan McDonald, has a new gig with the police union: janitor. The AP reports Chicago's Fraternal Order of Police hired Van Dyke—who is on unpaid leave from the police department—about three weeks ago. The Chicago Sun-Times describes him as a "jack-of-all-trades" making $12 an hour. “He might be on the roof, he might be in the office, he does anything we need,” union president Dean Angelo says. According to the union, Van Dyke has been unable to hold a job due to bad publicity, and threats forced his wife to close her business. "This officer is in a very difficult situation financially," Angelo tells the AP. "He has a family, and we would do it for anybody that works as a Chicago police officer." The announcement of Van Dyke's job with the police union on Wednesday sparked immediate criticism, and protesters were outside the Fraternal Order of Police Thursday, NBC Chicago reports. "If I killed someone, I wouldn't get bail," one protester says. "If I killed someone, I don't have a union to make sure that I'm employed." Van Dyke posted bond on $1.5 million bail, which the prosecution was against. The protester calls his hiring by the union a slap in the face to Chicago residents. In a Facebook post, a Catholic priest and social activist calls Van Dyke's hiring a "disgrace" and says "every union member should demand he be fired." Video released last year shows Van Dyke firing 16 shots at the 17-year-old McDonald, who was holding a knife, as McDonald walked away from officers in October 2014.