Mayor Emanuel avoids McDonald trial, does discuss Chicago violence with FOX 32

One day after his surprise announcement that he won't seek a third term, Mayor Rahm Emanuel is defending his legacy. He sat down with FOX 32’s Political Editor Mike Flannery.

This week's start of the Laquan McDonald murder trial was one topic on which the mayor would not take questions.

“Well I’m not gonna answer them because there's a trial. That would be a mistake, because there's a trial. I'll have other things and you can come back and you can ask me,” Emanuel said.

At that point, the mayor began to remove FOX 32’s microphone from his lapel, but then did stay to take other questions. FOX 32 asked why police in Chicago have solved only about 15 percent of this year's homicides, as highlighted in FOX 32's series, "Getting Away with Murder."

Flannery: “Why do so many people get away with murder in Chicago? We catch so few killers.”

Rahm Emanuel: “Well, you know, uh, this is a piece of it. It's not the whole thing. So, when I say it, everybody will go screaming and whatever! You know, you guys always report -- which is true, but it's not the whole truth. Is there a gulf of trust between police and community? Yeah! It's not a wider gulf between the community and criminal justice system. People don't have faith judges are going to hold criminals accountable. So they take the law into their own hands. It's also a gulf of trust. Part of them not working with the police -- not the whole story -- is that they don't think that criminal is going to be held accountable for that act of violence or crime.

Flannery: “They're afraid they might kill the witness.”

Rahm Emanuel: “Even if they have a witness, they won't cooperate. Because they're going to take things into their own hands.”

Mayor Emanuel seemed more relaxed than usual, at one-point imitating FOX 32’s Mike Flannery.

Rahm Emanuel: “Ladies and gentlemen, this is Mike Flannery, channel 32, FOX TV.”

Not bad, but a little too much hair.

The mayor told FOX 32 he's been offered big university jobs, but ruled that out, saying faculty politics can be far more vicious than anything at City Hall.