This report was produced in collaboration with City Bureau, a Chicago-based journalism lab. It is part of a series of “Explainers” that provide background on important topics relating to policing and criminal justice in Chicago. The full series is available here.
Leonard McGee, photographed by Maria Cardona / City Bureau.
This report was produced in collaboration with City Bureau, a Chicago-based journalism lab. An introduction to important concepts relating to CAPS and restorative justice can be found here.
Baci Weiler
These arbitration awards are not the end of the battle over these records, as both Crystal and Roumell’s decisions simply continue the preservation of the documents. Though the awards are legally binding, they are subject to appeal, and both Kalven and Futterman hedged when discussing their merits with the Sun-Times, calling them “sort of a reprieve,” and a “timeout,” respectively.
Over the years, journalists have covered the Chicago police from every angle, documenting not only police violence against communities of color but also the Department’s internal methods for protecting officers and disguising the truth about performance and misconduct. In light of the release of the Police Accountability Task Force report, the Weekly has collected here some of the most impactful and relevant coverage of the CPD.
A consent decree could lead to substantial changes in how the CPD uses force and handles complaints.
Ellen Hao
“I’ve heard those calls before.”
Ellie Mejía
“These records are vital to our work, and their destruction would pose a great challenge to our ability to investigate these cases.” Robert Olmstead
Ellie Mejia
“The numbers might look good,” Davis said, “but [those programs] sacrifice the quality of investigation.”
Thumy Phan
Since its creation in 2007, the Independent Police Review Authority has investigated almost four hundred police
shootings. They found only one to be unjustified.
When asked about the withdrawal of her endorsement in the wake of the FBI investigation, Brown suggested that it was motivated largely by political concerns.