Changing the Way Police Officers are Disciplined in Chicago
An
E-Alert from the Chicago Council of Lawyers
13 July 2007
On June 7, the Chicago
Council of Lawyers, along with the American Constitution Society (
Speakers included City of
Subsequent to the forum, public interest organizations, including the Council, began working with Mara Georges and members of the Chicago City Council to offer amendments to the proposed ordinance in an effort to produce the most fair and effective police disciplinary system possible. The following is a policy statement from the Chicago Council of Lawyers:
Changing the Way Police Officers are Disciplined in Chicago
A Statement from the
For
too long the City of
The vast majority of Chicago Police Officers serve with honor and
distinction, but the conduct of some falls short of what must be
expected from those vested with a vital public trust. In such cases,
discipline must be imposed in order to correct the officer's behavior,
to deter other officers from engaging in similar behavior, to bring a
sense of justice to the victim of the misconduct, and to ensure that the
public has confidence that those charged with enforcing the law are not
above it.
On June 7, 2007 the
It is now widely acknowledged that the OPS, as it is currently
constituted, is simply not up to its task. The proposed ordinance may
not include everything that everybody wants. This is the nature of the
political process. But we must move forward. To this end, the Chicago
Council of Lawyers suggests five items deemed to be critical to the
creation of an effective replacement for OPS. We urge the City Council
to pass an ordinance that includes the following provisions:
1) The ordinance should announce that it is the established public
policy of the city of Chicago to resolve complaints against the police
fairly and promptly, and that all subsequent collective bargaining
agreements (including the City's agreement with the Fraternal Order of
Police) must be consistent with this public policy.
2) The ordinance should include a broad definition of the term
"coercion" as one of the subjects the new agency would investigate,
defined as use of express or implied threats putting a person in
immediate fear of consequences to compel the person to act against their
will. Examples of coercion should include but not be limited to
non-physical threats or reprisals -- allegations that police officers
threaten witnesses by telling them that if they do not cooperate in
identifying suspects, either a parental neglect complaint will be filed
against them with the Department of Children and Family Services or they
will be charged with a crime. Another example of coercion would be
threats made by police officers against persons wishing to file
misconduct complaints.
3) The ordinance should authorize investigations of allegations that
involve discriminatory abuse - abusive actions by a police officer
directed against a person based upon race, color, gender, religion,
national origin, or sexual orientation.
4) The ordinance should provide for true civilian review by providing
the agency's Chief Administrator with the power to discipline an officer
when the investigation warrants it. Currently, the Police Superintendent
has the power to discipline an officer. However, the Superintendent may
be reluctant to punish an officer because it may be construed that he or
she failed to provide adequate oversight. Ideally, the Superintendent
should have no role in the proposed police discipline agency. Short of
this, however, if the Superintendent and the head of the new agency
disagree in a particular case, the Superintendent should have the burden
of overcoming the recommendation of the Chief Administrator of the
proposed agency.
5) The ordinance must provide for public disclosure of the number of
complaints filed in each police district and the number of complaints
filed against each police officer in each district. The new agency
should use these statistics to monitor trends in the filings of police
misconduct complaints.
The Chicago Council of Lawyers has been seeking fair and effective
administration of justice for more than 35 years. We represent thousands
of lawyers in
Carrie K. Huff
Malcolm C. Rich
Executive Director,