Today, the Independent Police Review Authority, under the leadership of Sharon Fairley, released investigative documents of 101 cases of officer-involved shootings and other instances of police violence and brutality against civilians. Chicago remains a City whose police department exists within extreme secrecy, routinely resisting all avenues of transparency to the public despite being a publicly funded institution.
The release of these documents and video reflect years of mounting public pressure waged by the people of Chicago who have demanded access to information that is both our legal and moral right to obtain. Panzy Edwards, the mother of Dakota Bright, a 15 year old child who was shot and killed by CPD and left in the street for 5 hours on November 8, 2012 to this day has still not received the police report, autopsy report or the name of the officer(s) involved in the killing of her son. This is an atrocity.
Dorothy Holmes, the mother of Ronald Johnson who was killed by Officer George Hernandez October 12, 2014, a mere eight days before Laquan McDonald was shot 16 times by Jason Van Dyke, waited for over a year for the dash cam video to be released, including file suit, and which was only released after a judge mandated the video of Laquan McDonald’s execution be released by court order. Dorothy was then sanctioned by the City’s attorney on December 22nd via a legal motion against her. The city's lawyers argued that Dorothy threatened Officer George Hernandez when she said to media that as a mother she was not backing down after the announcement that State's Attorney Anita Alvarez would not press charges against the officer. The City’s attorneys immediately withdrew the sanctions on December 23rd after a public protest was immediately mounted.
The people of Chicago continue to demand not only transparency from the Chicago Police, Mayor Rahm Emanuel, IPRA, City Council and all departments within government, but most importantly, and the one area where the City has made zero movement: we demand accountability for police who murder, brutalize and terrorize our communities.
Pastor Catherine Brown was beaten, pepper sprayed and had a gun pointed to her head by Officers Michelle Murphy and Jose Lopez while her children sat in the car on May 2013. Collectively, officers Murphy and Lopez have over 40 complaints filed against them. Why are they still on the force?
Dante Servin, the cop who killed Rekia Boyd March 21, 2012, resigned two days before the final steps in the evidentiary hearing to fire him, which alone took four years to occur. He made $97,044 as of December 31, 2015 and will be eligible to receive his pension in June 2018. Why are we as the public beholden to use our hard earned money to pay the pension of cop who Judge Dennis Porter found not guilty involuntary manslaughter, instead stating that he should have been charged with first-degree murder and cannot be tried again due to double jeopardy? Yes, you read that right. The state's decision to undercharge Servin for his crime at the outset means that he cannot be convicted of a higher charge at the discretion of the court since double jeopardy attached the moment a jury was impaneled. Therefore, Servin cannot be retried for the murder of Rekia Boyd and walks free, having literally gotten away with murder.
We, the people of Chicago, refuse to continue to accept the status quo. Our Mayor and governor do not represent our interests or our needs and continue to enact policies that further disenfranchise our communities increasing intra-communal violence. After conducting the largest public school closing in US history, further destabilizing already underserved communities, due to a state government budget stalemate, CPS chief Forrest Claypool announced last week that Chicago Public Schools may not have enough money to open in the fall.
The conditions for people who are not rich in Chicago are deplorable. We continue to be sold out by government officials to big business and their rich cronies. Chicago has the largest employment racial gap of young adult males in the country. Chicago has the most police per 100,000 in the country. Chicago is the false confession capital of the country. Chicago has also paid out over half a billion dollars to victims of police violence. Chicago pays out $4million a day to policing, the largest line item in the City’s operating budget. The trend here is obvious to everyone but City government. If there is an economic crisis, it is certainly partially the result of over-policing, and the economic consequences of a culture of refusing to hold police accountable for brutality, violence and murder at all costs - to make no mention of the many tax breaks rich corporations receive at expense of our public services.
We have no illusions that the conditions in Chicago exist within a vacuum. Two days ago, our sister Jasmine Abdullah (Richards) was charged with “felony attempted lynching” in Pasadena, CA for nonviolent actions taken during last year’s Peace March at La Pintoresca Park. A law that was originally intended to protect Black people from domestic terror by white supremacist violence has been manipulated to criminalize a young woman who has organized against injustices within her community.The irony here is sickening especially when actual murderers like Dante Servin and George Zimmerman walk free. We demand that Jasmine be freed and all charges be overturned.
We demand that the people of Chicago obtain control over police through an elected Civilian Police Accountability Council with representatives from each neighborhood, and the mandated inclusion of survivors and families of victims of police violence.
We demand the immediate revoking of Dante Servin’s pension.
We demand an immediate cap of CPD's budget.
We demand the reopening of the 50 schools closed.
We demand the reopening of the mental health centers closed.
We demand the immediate closing of Homan Square and all other unknown "black sites."
We demand the reopening of Ronald Johnson's case.
We demand immediate disinvestment in CPD and a reallocation of the operating funds currently allocated toward policing, which represent 40 percent of the City's operating budget.
We demand a redirection of these saved funds to be used for housing for the homeless and nearly homeless, the full funding of crisis and trauma centers, and a jobs program for our most underserved communities.
We demand immediate criminal prosecution of all police officers and government officials involved in the cover-ups of the murders of Rekia Boyd, Cedrick Chatman, Laquan McDonald and Ronald Johnson, including the city lawyers responsible for withholding evidence.
We demand the firing of all CPD officers who have filed or signed off on false police reports involving violence committed by themselves or other officers.
We demand that Officers Michelle Murphy and Jose Lopez be fired without a pension and be tried for perjury after falsifying reports on Pastor Catherine Brown.
Join us on Saturday, June 4th at 4421 S. State Street from 10am to 4pm to discuss the needs of our community, public safety, creating justice and how to stop the violence. We will have workshops on all of these items and will provide free food to the community.
Join us on June 22nd at City Hall at 8:30 am to demand that City government represent the needs of the people of Chicago and not the rich. We have suffered enough. A new Chicago is needed now!
