West Rogers Park is the most diverse tract in Chicago, and the variety of religious institutions located on just a few blocks of Devon Avenue illustrate as much.Read More
A Whole World on One Chicago StreetSarah Steimeron October 8, 2021 at 8:39 pm Read More »
Maggie Hickey. | Provided
The Chicago Police Department blew half its deadlines to reform policies on use of force, discipline, training and recruiting. But police Supt. David Brown says Chicago is farther ahead than any other city that’s been under such a court order.
A police watchdog said she’s “encouraged” by the Chicago Police Department’s most recent efforts at reform, though she noted in a report released Friday that just over half of about 500 reforms required under a federal consent decree have been carried out even partially.
Maggie Hickey — the independent monitor for sweeping reforms to policies on officers’ use of force, discipline, training and recruiting — also said the city met about half of its deadlines in the court order between January and July.
Police Supt. David Brown said that’s a positive thing.
In an interview, Brown said he believes the department’s report card is the best since the Hickey began issuing them in 2019. And he says Chicago is farther ahead in its first two years of the consent decree than any other department that’s been under one, including Los Angeles, Seattle, Detroit, Baltimore or New Orleans.
According to Hickey’s nearly 1,000-page report filed in federal court, one of the biggest areas of improvement was in the department’s Crisis Intervention Section, which responds to people with mental illnesses.
Hickey also commended the city for reaching a deal with the Fraternal Order of Police on an eight-year contract with new “accountability requirements.”
But she highlighted numerous areas where the department has fallen short.
For instance, the department is reforming its foot pursuit policy, but it disabled a computer dashboard on foot chases after acknowledging the data it had collected for the past two years was deeply flawed.
Hickey also said she’s concerned that more than 360 officers left the department between January and July, more than in all of 2018.
Pat Nabong / Sun-Times
Chicago Police Supt. David Brown.
Brown said he’s working hard to fill those jobs. “For the first time in the history of the Chicago Police Department, we have a dedicated recruiting team,” he said.
Hickey said the department needs to do more to get citizens’ input on reforms. “The CPD continues to fall short in its efforts to reach marginalized populations,” she said.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois agrees. It released a statement Friday saying “the monitor makes clear that CPD is not meaningfully engaging the public, missing the opportunity to solicit ideas and real life experiences for policies and approaches to combating violence.”
In 2015, the U.S. Justice Department launched an investigation of the Chicago Police Department in response to outrage over a video showing Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke shooting Laquan McDonald 16 times and killing him. Van Dyke was later fired and went to prison.
In January 2017, the Justice Department concluded that Chicago officers engaged in a “pattern and practice” of civil-rights violations. Later in 2017, the Illinois attorney general’s office sued the city, alleging the same violations. The 2019 consent decree is a settlement in federal court between the city and the attorney general’s office, requiring hundreds of reforms.
AP
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul.
In a letter attached to Hickey’s report, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul criticized the “lagging pace” of the Chicago Police Department’s compliance with the reforms set out in the decree, saying the “goal of establishing community trust in CPD remains far in the distance.”
Raoul echoed Hickey’s praise for the department in improving its response to mentally ill people. And he said the Civilian Office of Police Accountability, which investigates allegations of police misconduct, and the Chicago Police Board, which decides whether officers should be punished, have made substantial progress in reforming their operations.
But he was critical of the roving police units Brown created after he was hired last year.
The Community Safety Team is deployed to the scenes of shootings and robberies and is supposed to work with neighborhood leaders to improve relations between the police and citizens. The Critical Incident Response Team was created to “ensure the safety of residents and visitors during times of mass gatherings,” according to the department.
In his letter, Raoul said he was “concerned that the City and CPD continue to create and expand roving citywide units, such as the Community Safety Team, Critical Incident Response Team and newly announced gun team, which do not sufficiently incorporate community policing principles and do not use sufficient metrics to judge their effectiveness.”
But Brown said the Community Safety Team has built bridges with communities on the West and South Sides. Officers have been getting to know young people through athletics, particularly in a West Side baseball league, Brown said. Those officers also have handed out meals and masks during the coronavirus epidemic, he said.
“Maybe the attorney general is not aware of that,” Brown said.
Despite the past two years of soaring levels of violence in Chicago, Brown said a summer pilot program in the city’s 15 most dangerous police beats was successful at reducing crime by focusing a variety of city services in those areas — not just putting more officers there.
“That is the glimmer of hope for turning the corner,” Brown said.
Runners race down LaSalle Street near Wacker Drive during a past Bank of America Chicago Marathon. | Ashlee Rezin / Sun-Times file
Here’s how you can watch in person or from your couch, track a runner, plus tips on how to successfully maneuver around the city during the marathon Sunday.
After COVID-19 forced the cancellation of the Chicago Marathon last year, the city’s biggest test for long-distance runners returns Sunday.
More than 35,000 people from 50 states and 100 countries are expected to compete in the 26.2-mile race.
The course winds through 29 neighborhoods. So, even if you’re not running, chances are the race might affect Chicagoans’ travel plans Sunday.
Here’s a rundown of all you need to know:
The race begins with the men’s wheelchair grouping at 7:20 a.m. Sunday in Grant Park. The starting line is at Columbus Drive and Monroe Street. Here are the scheduled start times:
7:20 a.m.: Men’s wheelchair.
7:21: Women’s wheelchair.
7:23: Handcycle.
7:30: Wave 1 (red).
8: Wave 2 (blue).
8:35: Wave 3 Start (orange).
The race begins in Grant Park and generally winds its way north to Sheridan Road in Uptown, then back south and west by the United Center through the West Loop, south to 35th Street in Bronzeville, finishing back in Grant Park.
No. Only registered runners can watch at the start or finish line. Spectators can access Grant Park beginning at 9:30 a.m.
NBC-5, Telemundo Chicago and TeleXitos will have live TV coverage and live streaming from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m.
WSCR (670-AM) will broadcast the race from 7 a.m. to 11 a.m.
The Chicago Marathon app will provide live race-day runner tracking, along with elite athlete profiles, live broadcast streaming, weather, and an interactive course map. Download it here from the Apple App Store, or here via Google Play.
The finish line is at the south end of Grant Park. The elite runners are expected to cross first at about 9:30 a.m. All runners must finish within six and a half hours, which is about a 15-minute mile pace.
All participants must be fully vaccinated or provide a negative coronavirus test result from within the previous 72 hours.
Partly sunny, breezy and warm, about 74 degrees Sunday morning. There is a 30% chance of rain as of Tuesday, according to Accuweather.
Alphabetical signs can be found in the “Runner Reunite” area on Columbus Drive next to Butler Field. The post-race festival — with live music, food and drinks — will be from 9:30 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Public transit is the easiest way to get around and avoid road closings. Various L trains and buses can get you near Grant Park and around the course. The CTA will be providing extra race-day L and bus service.
Metra plans to add inbound trains during the early morning and outbound trains during the early afternoon Sunday on the BNSF, Metra Electric, Milwaukee District North and Union Pacific Northwest and West lines.
If you’re following a specific runner, the best way to keep up is to track him or her via the Chicago Marathon app.
There are numerous viewing locations. For example, in the fourth mile, you can see the field headed north on LaSalle Street at Division Street. Then, you could two blocks west and see runners going south on Wells Street around mile marker 12. And there’s a Red Line stop at Clark and Division, so you can head south and see other locations.
Any cars parked along the course will be towed starting at 1 a.m. Sunday.
Streets along the course will be closed starting at 7 a.m. Sunday.
As runners pass through the mile markers, the streets will reopen in a staggered manner from 10 a.m. (near mile markers 1 and 2) to 6 p.m. For a complete guide of reopenings, click here.
If you’re driving, the best way to avoid runners while heading north or south is by taking Jean Baptiste Point DuSable Lake Shore Drive.
To head east or west, Lower Wacker Drive is extremely useful at getting to Lake Michigan, the Magnificent Mile, Streeterville or Lake Shore Drive.
On foot, the Riverwalk is an easy way to get past closed Loop streets.
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“We’re very, very lucky that the ballistic vest stopped those two bullets,” Sheriff Ken Briley told reporters Thursday night.
A Grundy County sheriff’s deputy was in “very good shape” Friday after his protective vest stopped two of three bullets fired at him during a traffic stop and chase, officials said.
“We’re very, very lucky that the ballistic vest stopped those two bullets,” Sheriff Ken Briley told reporters Thursday night.
The deputy had tried to stop a car on Route 47 and Dupont Road near the town of Mazon near Morris shortly after 5 p.m. Thursday but the car sped away, Briley said.
The car hit two other cars before coming to a stop near a railroad crossing at Grand Ridge Road in Mazon, he said. The suspect ran off and the deputy chased him.
The deputy got within an “arms length or two” of the suspect when he turned around and fired at the deputy, Briley said.
One bullet hit him in the forearm but the two others, which hit him in the chest and the back — were stopped by his bulletproof vest, the sheriff said.
The suspect, 18-year-old Demarcus T. Denwiddie of Joliet, was arrested and charged with attempted murder, aggravated discharge of a firearm and aggravated battery. He was ordered held in Grundy County Jail on $10 million bail.
Before Thursday, a police officer had not been shot in Grundy County in 15 years, Briley said.
Inspector General Joe Ferguson speaks to members of the City Council during a budget hearing Thursday. | Anthony Vazquez, Anthony Vazquez/Sun-Times
In his final appearance at City Council budget hearings, Inspector General Joe Ferguson took Mayor Lori Lightfoot to task for shoddy record-keeping and an error-filled gang database.
Inspector General Joe Ferguson is closing out his extraordinary, 12-year run as Chicago’s top watchdog by taking Mayor Lori Lightfoot to task on three issues with the Chicago Police Department: its ShotSpotter technology, shoddy record-keeping and error-filled gang database.
Testifying Thursday evening for the final time at City Council budget hearings, Ferguson went out the way he came in: fiercely independent and refusing to pull punches.
On ShotSpotter technology — which his office recently concluded rarely leads to investigatory stops or evidence of gun crimes — Ferguson urged council members to ask tough questions and decide for themselves whether the contract is worth the cost.
The Committee on Public Safety is scheduled to do just that next week, essentially launching a “cost-benefit analysis” of the system, which alerts police to the sounds of gunfire.
“Superintendent Brown is absolutely right. There are cases made and there are bad actors caught because of a ShotSpotter alert,” Ferguson said. “But are enough of them caught to offset the harms that come from aggressive policing? From false positives that result in the police going in numbers into the community to chase after something that actually turns out to be nothing having to do with violence or gun offenses at all?”
He urged council members not to be deterred by the fact that the contract was recently renewed. “The renewed contract has a provision for cancellation. It’s been renewed. But we can say, `Thanks but no thanks’ under certain conditions.”
On another issue, Ferguson noted that the gang database continues to be used, even though it’s riddled with errors and there is still no appeals process.
“It’s been 2 1/2 years and promises made and promises not kept,” Ferguson said, obviously referring to Lightfoot who campaigned on a promise to get rid of the gang database and replace it with a mistake-free one includes an appeal process.
“I know work is being done,” he continued. “But… we’re still utilizing a system that we know and that IG reports have established is just not accurate and hangs over the lives of tens of thousands of Chicagoans, over 96 percent are Black- and Brown-skinned. We need to clean that up.”
Then there’s the matter of the grossly inadequate record management system at the police department.
Ferguson mentioned it when Ald. Byron Sigcho-Lopez (25th) asked him to identify his “top two or three priorities” that he would like to see his successor continue.
“Our work around the record management system … is impeding the ability of officers to draw upon all of the historical records of the people that they’re investigating that are within the department’s possession,” he said.
It is “affecting clearance rates and affecting the integrity of the criminal justice system as cases proceed to decisions of whether to charge, how to prosecute,” he said. “Cases have to get dismissed if we don’t know where our own records are.”
But those weren’t the only red flags Ferguson raised on his way out the door.
He warned that city department heads are no longer executing recommendations to rectify problems pinpointed by his office’s exhaustive program audits, even though they agreed to implement them.
In fact, they’ve “fallen off the cliff,” Ferguson said.
The departing inspector general took an indirect swipe at Lightfoot, claiming there is “no consequence at all to failing to execute on promises made in response to” his recommendations.
Ferguson urged aldermen to pick up the slack by holding more briefings on his reports and audits. He put in a renewed plug for his 2019 report recommending that tree-trimming be handled on a grid-system, instead of ward-by-ward.
“It would cost us less with less consequences coming from storms, better water management with lesser climate consequences that affect our more disadvantaged parts of the city,” Ferguson said.
He also urged the City Council to hire its own attorney because of the inherent conflicts of having the corporation counsel represent both branches of government.
Ferguson is a former federal prosecutor who served together with Lightfoot in the U.S. attorney’s office.
When he was appointed by former Mayor Richard M. Daley in 2009 to replace departing Inspector General David Hoffman, Lightfoot was among those who vouched for and recommended her friend Ferguson.
That close relationship initially raised questions about just how independent Ferguson would be in a Lightfoot administration. Since then, however, there has been tension behind the scenes, as there almost always is between a mayor and his or her watchdog.
Last fall, Lightfoot hinted strongly that she would not reappoint Ferguson because she “favors term limits” and does not believe “people should stay in office indefinitely. “
In July, Ferguson decided to go out on his own terms. He announced that he would leave at the end of his term on Oct. 15.
His replacement will be chosen by a search committee comprised of three mayoral appointees and two people chosen by the City Council.
A couple dance danzon during a rehearsal with the Failde Orchestra in Matanzas, Cuba. Danzon started in the city in the late 1800s and became the national dance of Cuba, spreading to other countries in the region. | AP
Some danzon scores from the 19th century that were lost in the archives in the Cuban city of Matanzas have been rediscovered. Four of them were recently recorded by the Failde Orchestra.
MATANZAS, Cuba — A man in a white guayabera approaches a woman and stretches out his hand, palm up, inviting her to dance. She stands up and waves her fan. On the dance floor, they get closer.
Such a scene at the end of the 19th century in Cuba was scandalous in some circles. It was also a new musical genre, the danzon.
Now some danzon scores from that time that were lost in the archives in the Cuban city of Matanzas have been rediscovered. Four of them were recently recorded by the Failde Orchestra, highlighting what became the national dance of Cuba and later spread to other countries in the region.
Recording the scores is important so that society today and future generations ?have a reference for what was their identity,? said musicologist Maria Victoria Oliver.
She and colleagues found the scores after checking the archives of several Matanzas institutions, including the provincial library, the concert band and the local museum. Even though the danzon started in the city in 1879, there were few written records of it until the early 20th century.
AP
Flutist Ethiel Failde conducts a rehearsal of danzon with the Failde Orchestra in Matanzas, Cuba, earlier this month. Failde, a great-great-grandnephew of the creator of danzon, Miguel Failde, said he “fell in love” with danzon when his elementary school teacher taught him to dance and then took it up as a professional musician.
The 16 pieces that were discovered included both danzones and danzonetes, the latter being a variation that incorporated vocal interpretation and other changes. Several are part of the album “Joyas Ineditas,” or ?Unpublished Jewels.? It is produced by the Egrem label, with arrangements and performance by the Failde Orchestra, led by flutist Ethiel Failde, a great-great-grandnephew of the creator of danzon.
“It is a great joy to be able to find unpublished scores that allow us to demonstrate an evolution of the genre,” said Oliver. The work was cumbersome and included “translation” of the scores, since the 19th century writing method was different from that of today and arrangements had to be made to update the music without losing its essence.
Located 60 miles east of Havana, Matanzas had electricity even before the capital, thanks to its huge bay, a transit point for Cuban sugar exports as well as the arrival of enslaved people to work on sugar plantations in defiance of European bans on slavery.
The city retains vestiges of the sugar boom: stately mansions and other old homes with wood-lined walls and high ceilings that hosted the emergence of danzon, a precursor of other musical genres such as the mambo or chachacha.
The danzon spread to the Dominican Republic and Mexico, where it has passionate followers today.
The first danzon had origins in the old Spanish contradanzas, danced in pairs but physically distanced, and it incorporated the Cuban musical heritage that had roots in Africa. It was premiered by Miguel Failde and his orchestra from Matanzas in 1879 and titled “The Heights of Simpson.”
The album “Joyas Ineditas,” recorded in February, includes the rescued danzones “El Naranjero”, “Cuba Libre”, “A La Habana me Voy” and “Nievecita” by Miguel Failde himself.
“I am happy because it will be my tribute to Miguel Failde,” said descendant Ethiel Failde, who now conducts the orchestra, made up of artists mostly in their 20s.
Ethiel Failde said he “fell in love” with danzon when his elementary school teacher taught him to dance and then took it up as a professional musician.
“Joyas Ineditas” was launched in two formats: one standard with a typical acrylic case and the other inserted in a wooden box that includes five Cuban cigars.
“It is one of the Cuban genres that has lasted the longest,? Failde said. ?150 years later, it’s still alive.?
Michael Pickering | Chicago Fire Department
Michael Pickering is the fourth member of the Chicago Fire Department to die from complications of the virus.
A Chicago firefighter has died from COVID-19, the fourth member of the department to die from complications of the virus.
Michael Pickering, 45, joined the department in 2003. He was assigned to Engine 29 in Bridgeport and was a father of three, officials said.
On April 7, 2020, Mario Araujo became the first member of the fire department to die from the virus. Araujo, 49, joined the fire department in October 2003 and spent most of his career on Truck 25, which operates out of Engine 102 in Rogers Park.
Firefighter Edward Singleton died a week later from COVID-19 complications. Singleton, 55, worked at the firehouse at Midway Airport.
In December, Paramedic Robert Truevillian died from the virus. The 55-year-old was assigned to ambulance 71, which operates out of the firehouse at 10458 S. Hoxie Ave. in South Deering, officials said.
Chicago firefighter dies of COVID-19Sun-Times Wireon October 8, 2021 at 5:24 pm Read More »
AP Photos
Astros to start Luis Garcia in Game 3 at Guaranteed Rate Field
HOUSTON — Left-hander Carlos Rodon remains in play as a starter for Game 3 or Game 4 (if necessary) in the ALDS, White Sox manager Tony La Russa said Friday.
La Russa said Rodon would have been announced by now if not for uncertainty about Rodon’s shoulder, but there seems to be growing optimism from pitching coach Ethan Katz and even La Russa, who has sounded pessimistic regarding Rodon’s level of effectiveness since he came off the injured list.
“The fact that we’re still optimistic means that he’s showing enough,” La Russa said Friday, “but the throws he’s got to make between now and Sunday and Monday, they dictate. He throws, you see how he reacts. Just don’t know for sure, and he doesn’t know for sure. We’ve had a lot of talks about it.”
The Sox will announce Sunday’s starter for Game 3 at Guaranteed Rate Field (7:07 p.m.) on Saturday, an off day, before the team works out at the ballpark. It will be Dylan Cease or Rodon, La Russa said.
Rodon pitched five scoreless innings against the Reds in his last start last Wednesday, but his four-seam fastball velocity was in the low 90s, and his slider, one of the best in baseball, wasn’t always as sharp as normal. He gave up one run over 14 innings in two starts against the Astros this season.
Astros manager Dusty Baker said right-hander Luis Garcia will start Game 3. Jose Urquidy is the likely choice if a Game 4 is necessary.
“That was a big topic of discussion on who we were going to go with at Game 3,” Baker said.
Garcia, one of the AL’s top rookies in 2021, posted a 3.30 ERA, started Game 5 of the ALCS against Tampa Bay last season as an opener.
Lucas Giolito (11-9, 3.53) goes against Astros lefty Framber Valdez (11-6, 3.14) in Game 2 Friday (1:07 p.m.).
1. Tim Anderson SS
2. Luis Robert CF
3. Jose Abreu 1B
4. Yasmani Grandal C
5. Eloy Jimenez LF
6. Yoan Moncada 3B
7. Andrew Vaughn DH
8. Leury Garcia 2B
9. Adam Engel RF
The original lineup had Abreu listed at designated hitter. Abreu DH’d in the Sox’ 6-1 loss in Game 1 Thursday, still fighting effects of the flu, but appeared to be in much better spirits during batting practice Friday.
“Today we came with more engergy,” Moncada said through translator Billy Russo, “and we’re just ready for today’s game.”
October is Breast Cancer Awareness month and so many restaurants and bars are doing what they can to help raise funds. The below fundraising campaigns will run throughout the month of October. What’s a better feeling than enjoy some delicious food, drink, and doing good at the same time?
Also, check out the large fundraiser campaign at Farm Bar and Farmhouse as they kick off year-end fundraising early this year!
Image Credit: The Goddess and Grocer
901 N Larrabee St, Chicago, IL 60610
Our Boobies For A Cause Cupcakes for In Good Taste will be available all October long for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. They are $4 for a two-pack of mini boobies in various flesh tones to celebrate all women and $1 from each sale will be donated to the Lynn Sage Foundation.
Other participating locations: Bucktown, Gold Coast, O’Hare Terminal 5.
456 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60654
Drink Pink at Roka Akor this October to support Breast Cancer Awareness Month as they team up with Distinguished Vineyards.
During the entirety of October, $3 from every glass of Argyle Brut Rosé purchased and $20 from every bottle purchased will also be donated to Editha House, a nonprofit organization that provides affordable lodging for adult cancer patients and their adult caregivers traveling for medical treatment.
Other participating locaitons: 4999 Old Orchard Shopping Center, 166 Oakbrook Center.
Image Credit: Aba-Chicago
302 N Green St 3rd Floor, Chicago, IL 60607
Aba-Chciago will donate $1 from each Cactus King order to The Lynn Sage Foundation, a non-profit organization funding inventive breast cancer research. The Cactus King is a signature cocktail with Nosotros Reposado, Brovo Pink, pink guava, honey, soda ($14).
Image Credit: Beatrix
519 N Clark St, Chicago, IL 60654
The Pink Ribbon Cookies at Beatrix are back! $1 from each Pink Ribbon Cookie sold benefits The Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Foundation’s Chicago’s In Good Taste, a breast cancer research initiative.
Other participating locations: Streeterville, Fulton Market and Oak Brook
Make a reservation at the Beatrix location nearest you or grab them at the Pastry Counter
74 W Illinois St, Chicago, IL 60654
Ema is donating $1 from each Cactus Queen sold benefits The Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Foundation’s Chicago’s In Good Taste, a breast cancer research initiative. Cactus Queen is a delicious cocktail with Nosotros Blanco, Brovo Pink, guava, honey, and soda ($13).
A post shared by Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba! (@cafebabareeba)
2024 N Halsted St, Chicago, IL 60614
For the month of October, $1 of every La Bebida Rosa sold benefits The Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Foundation’s Chicago’s In Good Taste, a breast cancer research initiative. La Bebida Rosa is a vodka cocktail with raspberry, lemon, rosemary simple, and agave ($12)
Make a reservation at Cafe Ba-Ba-Reeba!
A post shared by Lil’ Ba-Ba-Reeba (@lilbabareeba)
441 N Clark St #1, Chicago, IL 60654
$1 of every Strawberry Rosita benefits The Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Foundation’s Chicago’s In Good Taste, a breast cancer research initiative.
Strawberry Rosita is a signature cocktail with strawberry-infused Corazón Tequila, Aperol, Vermut, agave, and citrus ($14)
Make a reservation at Lil’ Ba-Ba-Reeba!
Image Credit: M Burger
835 N Michigan Ave, Chicago, IL 60611
$1 from every Strawberry shake benefits The Pink Agenda, an organization in support of breast cancer awareness, research, and care.
Other participating location: Aurora
Order carryout and delivery from M Burger
A post shared by Mon Ami Gabi (@monamigabibistro)
2300 N Lincoln Park W, Chicago, IL 60614
$1 of every Temptation 75 benefits The Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Foundation’s Chicago’s In Good Taste, a breast cancer research initiative. Temptation 75 is a specialty cocktail with Código Rosa Tequila, Marquis de la Tour Sparkling Rosé with grapefruit and rosemary ($15.95)
Make a reservation at Mon Ami Gabi
A post shared by Summer House Santa Monica (@summerhousesm)
1954 N Halsted St, Chicago, IL 60614
$1 of every sale of this cocktail benefits The Lynn Sage Breast Cancer Foundation’s Chicago’s In Good Taste, a breast cancer research initiative. Aperol We’ve Been Through is made with Aperol, pineapple, lemon, and orange bitters ($15).
Make a reservation at Summer House Santa Monica
A post shared by Wow Bao (@wowbao)
Wow Bao Orders on Grubhub
A portion of the proceeds from every order benefits the Lynn Sage Foundation when you use code WBLYNNSAGE at checkout, plus receive 20% (up to $5) off your order ($15 min).
CONTACT: 312-658-0305 | Order carryout and delivery from Wow Bao
Featured Image Credit: Summer House Santa Monica
Maggie Hickey. | Provided
Maggie Hickey, independent monitor of a consent decree requiring the Chicago Police Department to reform its policies on use of force, discipline, training and recruiting, says CPD blew about half its deadlines between January and July.
A police reform watchdog says she’s “encouraged” by the Chicago Police Department’s most recent efforts, though she noted in a report released Friday that just over half of about 500 reforms have been carried out even partially.
Maggie Hickey — the independent monitor for a federal consent decree requiring sweeping reforms to policies on officers’ use of force, discipline, training and recruiting — said the city met about half of its deadlines in the court order between January to July.
One of the biggest areas of improvement was in the department’s Crisis Intervention Section, which responds to people with mental illnesses, according to Hickey’s nearly 1,000-page report filed in federal court.
Hickey also commended the city for reaching a deal with the Fraternal Order of Police on an eight-year contract with new “accountability requirements.”
But she highlighted numerous areas where the department has fallen short.
For instance, the department is reforming its foot pursuit policy, but disabled a computer dashboard on foot chases after acknowledging the data it collected for the past two years was deeply flawed.
Hickey says she’s concerned that more than 360 officers left the department between January and July, more than in all of 2018.
And she says the department needs to do more to get citizens’ input on reforms.
“The CPD continues to fall short in its efforts to reach marginalized populations,” Hickey said.
The American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois released a statement Friday saying “the monitor makes clear that CPD is not meaningfully engaging the public, missing the opportunity to solicit ideas and real life experiences for policies and approaches to combating violence.”
In 2015, the U.S. Justice Department launched an investigation of the Chicago Police Department in response to outrage over a video showing Chicago police Officer Jason Van Dyke shooting Laquan McDonald 16 times and killing him. Van Dyke was later fired and went to prison.
In January 2017, the Justice Department concluded that Chicago officers engaged in a “pattern and practice” of civil-rights violations. Later in 2017, the Illinois attorney general’s office sued the city, alleging the same violations. The 2019 consent decree is a settlement in federal court between the city and the attorney general’s office, requiring hundreds of reforms.
AP
Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul.
In a letter attached to Hickey’s report, Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul criticized the “lagging pace” of the Chicago Police Department’s compliance with the reforms set out in the decree, saying the “goal of establishing community trust in CPD remains far in the distance.”
Raoul echoed Hickey’s praise for the department in improving its response to mentally ill people. And he said the Civilian Office of Police Accountability, which investigates allegations of police misconduct, and the Chicago Police Board, which decides whether officers should be punished, have made substantial progress in reforming their operations.
But he was critical of the roving police units police Supt. David Brown created after he was hired last year.
The Community Safety Team is deployed to the scenes of shootings and robberies and is supposed to work with neighborhood leaders to improve relations between the police and citizens.
The Critical Incident Response Team was created to “ensure the safety of residents and visitors during times of mass gatherings,” according to the department.
In his letter, Raoul said he was “concerned that the City and CPD continue to create and expand roving citywide units, such as the Community Safety Team, Critical Incident Response Team and newly announced gun team, which do not sufficiently incorporate community policing principles and do not use sufficient metrics to judge their effectiveness.”
Last month, the police department filed its own report in federal court outlining its efforts to comply with the consent decree. “We are proud of the progress we made,” Robert Boik, executive director of the Office of Constitutional Policing and Reform, told reporters after that report was filed. “This is a long haul.”
