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Attorney For Bettie Jones' Family Calls New CPD Policy "Too Little, Too Late"

(CBS) -- Mayor Rahm Emanuel and interim Police Superintendent John Escalante announced new policing tactics after two people were killed by Chicago Police last weekend.

The attorney for one of those victims spoke with CBS 2's Dana Kozlov.

The deaths of 19-year-old Quintonio LeGrier and 55-year-old Bettie Jones shifted policing changes into high gear.

Some say the changes are too little, too late and while new tactics are being discussed, details about the weekend's shootings are not.

"We have a long history in this city," Emanuel said Wednesday. "That trust has been frayed to the point that it's broken."
Mayor Rahm Emanuel is referring to the trust, or lack of it, between the black community and police, an acknowledgement he made while discussing changes within the police department about how officers are trained and the weapons they carry.

"Just because you train that you can use force doesn't mean you should," Emanuel said.

The weekend shooting deaths of 19-year-old Quintonio Legrier and 55-year-old Bettie Jones by a Chicago Police officer prompted these changes. They include doubling the number of police-issued stun guns from 700 to 1,400 and retraining officers on how to respond in a critical incident, so they use the least amount of physical force necessary.

Attorney Larry Rogers Jr. says the move is "too little, too late for Bettie Jones and her family."

He represents Jones' family and is also frustrated by the city's continued lack of information about what led to Jones' death in her own home.

At Wednesday's press conference, Mayor Emanuel and interim Police Supt. John Escalante referred questions on the investigation into that fatal shooting to the Independent Police Review Authority.

Rogers calls that unacceptable, adding he's FOIA'd and personally requested information with no results.

"What we're asking for are objective pieces of evidence, things that are stagnant that won't change," Rogers said. "Why can't you produce existing videos? Why can't you produce photographs that were taken at the scene?"

Rogers say Mayor Emanuel met with Bettie Jones' daughters Wednesday afternoon, after his news conference. He offered his condolences.

They told him they were concerned about the interactions between police and segments of the community. The mayor, he said, just listened.

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