In just under an hour, I’ll be live-tweeting the Chicago Police Board meeting happening at 7:30pm CST for @CHIdocumenters.
The meeting will be taking place remotely via audio conference and you can watch along on https://cantv.org/live/.
Follow this thread for updates!
06:44 PM Jun 18, 2020 CDT
More details on the audio conference:
If you wish to join, dial 312-626-6799 and enter the meeting ID 999 8424 5988 (only the meeting ID is needed; if prompted for a participant ID, press #).
For context:
The Chicago Police Board is an independent civilian body that oversees certain activities of the Chicago Police Department. The 9 members of the board are private citizens appointed by the Mayor with the consent of City Council.
Some of their primary responsibilities include the following.
- Deciding disciplinary cases involving police misconduct
- Nominating candidates for the position of Superintendent of Police to the Mayor
- Holding monthly public meetings for ppl to submit questions/comments
The current president of the CPB is Ghian Foreman. He was appointed in 2018 by then mayor Rahm Emanuel after the former president, Lori Lightfoot, resigned to enter the mayoral race.
You read that right. Our current Mayor was formerly the President of the Chicago Police Board.
Ironically enough, the current President of the Board was also hit several times by a police officer with a baton during a protest on May 31. He has since filed a complaint with the Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA).
Important agenda items for today:
- Disciplinary actions
- Proposed amendments to rules
- Orders issued by the Superintendent of Police during the previous month
- Report of the Superintendent of Police
- Questions and comments from the public
President Foreman just called the meeting to order at 7:30pm.
“It’s a full house tonight.”
“As you all know, I experienced first-hand the impacts of the protests here in Chicago … I have since filed a complaint with COPA”, says President Foreman.
He shares that this experience has given him a new perspective on what it means to have police accountability.
We will be now be hearing comments from Chicago Police Superintendent David Brown.
Sup. Brown shares details on how CPD has handled the recent protests.
1360 people arrested related to violent protest
213 people arrested for looting
538 guns recovered
More than 200 police officers injured while on-duty during protests and all have worked over 12 hr+ shifts
Chief administrator of COPA, Sydney Roberts, now gives her comments regarding the recent protests.
Roberts shares that COPA has received 591 complaints during the protests.
371 complaints are protest-related
139 complaints fall within COPA’s jurisdiction
232 complaints have been referred to CPD’s bureau of internal affairs
“If you have been a victim of police misconduct or have witnessed police misconduct, please contact us at 312-746-COPA,”says Roberts while closing her statement.
The Board will now be reviewing cases of police misconduct and voting on disciplinary actions.
There was no discussion on the three cases that were reviewed. I will recap details on each of the police officers reviewed by the Board after the meeting.
“Defund the police. Abolish the police. Abolish CPD,” says first speaker.
The second speaker says that FOP and CPD has only cared to preserve the institution and not the people it serves. They took up their whole two minutes to demand change within CPD.
The third speaker used up about 10 seconds to “thank the good police officers who are doing a good job.”
The fourth public speaker is currently giving a list of 14 recommendations for police training with the goal of reducing police misconduct.
The fifth public speaker says that if there is going to be any change, “we need to first start by building a relationship.”
The speaker was cut off right at the 2 minute mark while talking about the degradation of African-Americans by CPD.
The next public speaker is from the 24th ward and wants to thank their local police officers for all their help.
“We have a lot of bad apples but we also have a lot of good police officers. I want to give them praise.”
The next speaker is thanking the 11th police district for doing their best.
The next public speaker is petitioning on behalf of Ward 4,5,6, to “prevent non-residents from loitering in our neighborhoods.”
The next public speaker (sorry I lost count) asks for improvement in community policing in all districts. They also recommend more beat integrity, foot patrol, and more communication with the community to build trust.
The next public speaker encourages advocacy for cadet program. This program “provides intern work with the CPD” and “provides full-time employment”.
The following speaker finishes up recommendations for cadet programs and asks the Board to meet with residents for more info.
The next public speaker invites Sup. Brown to meet with the community members of the southside to have further conversations on police accountability.
The next public speaker says “community policing should drive your strategy but instead its an afterthought” and asks for follow-up from Sup. Brown on recommendations to improve community policing.
The next public speaker is addressing a “midnight party caravan” that a previous speaker brought up. “They’re loitering and bringing in strippers.”
“The police were called for 5 hours and no one showed up.”
The next public speaker starts by giving praise to Sup. Brown for his handling of recent protests. Then, he says that Commander Spencer needs to be discharged for police misconduct.
The next public speaker shares their concern as a father for police officers who carry guns but lack good judgement.
The next public speaker starts off by saying, “We don’t need a new cop academy. We need new cops.”
“Has any inquired why Eddie Johnson’s wife was made commander?” continues the speaker.
The next public speaker says, “I am not anti-police. I am anti-vigilante police.”
The next public speaker is from West Humboldt Park and suggests that police officers need to work on building relationships. They bring up the West Side Talent Show, a virtual talent show, as an initiative that can improve community relations.
The next public speaker starts off by yelling, “DID YOU GET MY EMAIL?” to President Foreman.
They advise President Foreman to check his email regarding petitions relating to grand juries.
The public comment section has ended. Only speakers who signed up beforehand were given permission to speak.
And with that, meeting has been adjourned.
The next Chicago Police Board meeting is set for Thursday, July 16th.
Continue following @CHIdocumenters for updates on more local government meetings! Thanks for following along.