Judge could make key decisions in Laquan McDonald murder trial Thursday

CHICAGO (WLS) -- The Chicago police officer charged with murder in the killing of Laquan McDonald was back in court Thursday morning.

Chicago Police Officer Jason Van Dyke is accused of fatally shooting Laquan McDonald 16 times in October 2014 and has been charged with first-degree murder and aggravated battery.

The judge was hoping to make a couple of key decisions to clear the way for the trial to begin.

Both sides, prosecution and defense, along with the judge, went back to the judge's chambers for about 40 minutes to an hour, deciding what questions would be on the jury questionnaire. Those questions will remain secret so as not to affect the purity and answer consistency of potential jurors.

Some of the other issues that remain include when this trial will get started. The defense wants to have the judge set a trial date. The judge is talking about sometime this summer.

The judge is yet to rule on a possible change of venue. Some legal experts say that the possible change of venue, if granted, may affect whether or not the defense requests a bench trial or a jury trial.

The concern would be if the change of venue takes place and if the jury is from outside Cook County, there may be a jury trial. If that doesn't happen, there may be a bench trial.