The Chicago Police Department's chief of detectives retired suddenly from his post Monday amid resignations of other top officials in the police department following the release of the Laquan McDonald shooting video.
Constantine "Dean" Andrews announced his retirement to interim Supt. John Escalante on Sunday. Escalante said Andrews' sudden retirement "surprised" him, but he praised his work in the department over the years.
"Yesterday, Chief Dean Andrews notified me of his intentions to retire as head of the Chicago Police Department's Bureau of Detectives," Escalante said in a statement. "After serving the CPD for over 26 years, including the last 14 as a member of our executive command staff, Chief Andrews made this decision after considerable deliberation which began last week.
"Chief Andrews felt the timing was best so that the department could move forward with the current leadership transition so a new administration would be able to assemble their own team of senior commanders. While I was personally surprised and saddened by his decision, his reasons are a testament to his dedication to the Chicago Police Department."
Earlier Monday, a police source told NBC Chicago that Andrews had resigned.
Andrews was promoted to chief of detectives by former Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy in October. In 2011, when he was deputy chief of detectives, Andrews was put in charge of investigating the David Koschman case, which he closed without charges against Richard J. "R.J." Vanecko, according to the Chicago Sun-Times. Andrews was later put under investigation for his role in the case.
It is unclear who will succeed Andrews.
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Andrews' retirement comes on the heels of the resignation of Scott Ando, formerly the head of the Independent Police Review Authority, who stepped down on Sunday. McCarthy was also ousted last week by Mayor Rahm Emanuel.
As the resignations continue, U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch announced the Justice Department has launched a civil "pattern and practice investigation" into the Chicago Police Department to determine whether the fatal police shooting of 17-year-old McDonald in October 2014 was part of a larger widespread pattern of officers violating civil rights.
The investigation will focus on the department's use of force, Lynch said, particularly if there are racial, ethnic or other disparities in officers' use of force and their systems of accountability.
In response to the additional probe, Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who has faced his calls for his own resignation in the last few weeks, released a statement saying he welcomed the investigation and will "pledge the City's complete cooperation."
