[in person] Police Board

Criminal Justice

Thursday, Dec. 21, 2023
7:30 p.m. — 8:30 p.m. CST

3510 S Michigan Ave Chicago, IL 60653 (Directions)

Chicago Public Safety Headquarters

This is an in-person assignment and an additional hour will be added to your total assignment hours. You may be asked to provide government-issued photo ID and to go through a metal detector. The assignment duration is an estimate based on past meeting run times.

It is possible that a livestream will be confirmed at a later date. If this is the case, you will have the option to document remotely.

Check the source website for additional information

Reporting

Edited and summarized by the Chicago - IL Documenters Team

Note-taking by Julian Gonzalez

CPD still hasn’t met all the requirements of the consent decree

View notes

Live reporting by Eliot Wyeth

CPD still hasn’t met all the requirements of the consent decree

Eliot Harper Wyeth @elharpwhy

Good evening Chicago! Tonight I'll be covering the Police Board meeting for @CHIdocumenters #CHIdocumenters

07:20 PM Dec 21, 2023 CST

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This meeting is being held in person at 3510 S Michigan Ave Chicago, IL 60653, Public Safety Headquarters.

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The Chicago Police Board has also started a youtube page for viewing these meetings after the fact, which can be found here:

youtube.com/@chicagopolice…

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It is also being streamed on Channel 27.

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President Kyle Cooper has opened the meeting. This is his first meeting since his appointment on the 13th.

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The Board has reviewed the minutes of their closed meetings, and maintained that confidentiality still needs to maintained.

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Aileen Robinson, Assistant Director, is giving a presentation on officer-involved domestic violence.

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The rates of domestic violence in Chicago are comparable to any other major city.

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The department has a policy of "meeting the victim where they are" - i.e., if they want to pursue consequences, the dept will accompany them at every step; if they want nothing to do with the process, they will accommodate that too.

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They also provide medical and legal support.

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They can also support victims in finding shelter, even if they need to be far outside the city for their safety.

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There are a few new services: support for victims of sexual misconduct, support for non-targets of search warrants, and support for the families of people who were killed.

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Some victims end up needing to go on government assistance; they provide support in navigating those processes too.

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Ms. Robinson opens for questions. Rev Michael Eaddy asks what happens when the victim does not pursue consequences for the offender. She clarifies that department members are still held accountable.

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Vice President Paula Wolff asks how often victims show up to hearings. Ms Robinson suggests a ballpark figure of 15%.

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Ms Wolff asks if no consequences are given, are there are repeat offenses? Ms Robinson clarifies that they don't work with offenders for ethical reasons; they refer those people out to other services.

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Ms Wolff asks if there are other departments that serve offenders. Ms Robinson says that she has done the research and she is aware of none.

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This concludes Ms Robinson's presentation.

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Next is police disciplinary cases.

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The details of these cases were discussed in a closed meeting.

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Officer Patrick Brown is suspended without pay in a vote of 5 to 2.

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Superintendent recommended Officer Michael Mancha be removed from the department, but he has resigned. This vote is to withdraw charges, because he is no longer a member of the dept. Passes 9 to 0.

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Next is appeals for disqualified applicants to become a Chicago police officer. Details regarding these appeals were discussed in a closed meeting.

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First motion passes (no details given).

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Superintendant Snelling reports that in 2023 there were fewer shootings and fewer homicides than there were in 2022.

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Thanks to their vehicular highjacking team, there was a 21% reduction in highjackings.

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The department recovered over $1m in stolen merchandise in 2023.

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Chief Administrator of COPA Andrew Kersten is now giving her report.

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There is now a policy of posting footage of all officer-involved shooting deaths.

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Ms Kersten praises the inclusion of Aileen Robinson's presentation. COPA has a dedicated team for incidents of domestic violence and sexual misconduct.

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Public comment is open. Matt Brandon is up first.

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He is here on behalf of Operation Neighborhood Safety. He thanks the dept for legitimizing their organization, among others.

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June Northly is up next, and she is also with Operation Neighborhood Safety. She urges the board members to get on the ground and be hands-on with the public to better understand their constituents.

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Robert Moore is called next. He is not here.

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Incoming Board President Kyle Cooper thanks outgoing President Ghian Foreman for all of his work over the last ten years.

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Meeting is adjourned at 8:25PM.

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This concludes your coverage of the December 2023 Police Board Meeting. The next meeting will be January 18th, 7:30PM, Chicago Public Safety Headquarters (3510 S Michigan Ave). For more meeting coverage, visit #CHIdocumenters

documenters.org

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Agency Information

Chicago Police Board

www.chicago.gov

(312) 742-4194

Carisa.Boatman@cityofchicago.org

@PoliceBoard

See Documenters reporting

The Chicago Police Board is an independent civilian body that oversees various matters of the Chicago Police Department, mainly deciding disciplinary cases involving police officers or members of the department, and nominating candidates for Superintendent of Police. The nine individuals who sit on the board are appointed by the mayor.

If you’re attending a Police Board meeting in person, be prepared to go through security. You may hear graphic descriptions of violent events or loud verbal protest from members of the public.

Remote meetings may be viewed at https://cantv.org/watch-now/ or on CAN-TV, Chicago cable channel 27. The video recordings are later posted on Youtube and previously on CAN TV’s YouTube within a day or two.

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