Civilian oversight; Public safety; Police accountability
This 6:30pm in-person meeting will take place in Conference Hall A at Malcolm X College (1900 W Jackson Blvd)
More info on CCPSA: https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/ccpsa.html
At the moment, an interim board is serving in preparation for elections.
Meeting agenda (source PDF: https://www.chicago.gov/content/dam/city/depts/ccpsa/Agenda/Agenda-Public-Meeting-2022-09-29.pdf) https://t.co/aPXacupoCY
There is a band playing in a nearby conference room, causing concern among some that we won’t be able to hear the meeting proceedings.
Roll is called, establishing a quorum (all commissioners present).
The commission makes a statement recognizing indigenous people and land occupancy https://t.co/PmE82WqF9k
Commissioner Beth Brown reads a statement expressing gratitude for all who worked toward making the commission possible
Public comment is next. Commissioner Terry says the commission takes public comment very seriously. Written comment can also be submitted via email.
- Questions regarding exactly what the commission is and why their documentation is not written in other languages like Spanish.
- Frank Chapman of Empowering Communities for Public Safety (ECPS) says they put in a lot of work to get the commission. He says they’re happy to have the commission and are here to challenge and support them. He says CCPSA has no budget or staff and that they need support.
Chapman says they didn’t do all this work and protesting to have a “lame duck” commission. “We need work done.”
- Questions why there isn’t someone on the commission with conflict resolution experience.
- A man running for a local district council shares the story of his incarcerated brother and speaks in hopeful terms of this current opportunity.
- Someone from the 17th district also mentions that the commission needs proper funding and hopes they can help put an end to “no-knock” procedures.
6.Jackie Baldwin of JCUA discusses the human cost of police misconduct. She says involving armed officers in social situations endangers citizens. Baldwin also mentions the significant financial costs of police misconduct to taxpayers.
- A rep from AAAN says the mayor and City Council will be held accountable for providing sufficient resources for CCPSA.
- Another candidate for a district council says they have been talking with a lot of folks who want non-carceral solutions and that there needs to be greater public awareness of the commission
- Another rep from ECPS discusses their work advancing public oversight. They read a statement welcoming the commission and discuss the role of district commissions.
- Discussion of ECPS expectations for CCPSA. They say supporting the local district councils is a critical first step for the commission. “Time is of the essence.” They say the district councils need to be publicized more widely.
- A rep from the Tree of Life Justice League says many people here today are here as parents. Those who fought for the commission are likened to parents. The message is that the stakes are high, and that the commission needs support and to recognize they represent the people.
- Another rep from ECPS highlights professionalism in addressing racial bias, excessive use of force, and improving police recruitment practices and candidate screening.
- A father whose son was killed by a Chicago Police officer says the officer is off the force but was never indicted. He prays the commission will do a good job and speaks with hope.
- Another rep from ECPA expresses their delight in seeing all the people who came out for tonight’s meeting. They say we will make history and will make sure the commission gets the support it needs to end deadly foot chases, the “parasitic police budget”, and no-knock warrents
There will be another public comment period at the end of the meeting.
Normally there would be reports shared at this stage of the meeting, but since the commission is new, there are no reports to share.
Commissioner Adam Gross discussed CCPSA, local district councils, and the ordinance that created these entities. https://t.co/1HAkuiommf
This page discusses the roles and powers of the commission: https://www.chicago.gov/city/en/depts/ccpsa/supp_info/community-commission.html
Gross says the permanent commission will probably be elected in Fall 2023.
New business: starting election of new officers. Commissioners Driver and Gomez are nominated to serve as President and VP of the commission. Motion passes unanimously.
Newly-elected commission President Driver apologizes to Spanish speakers regarding the lack of translated materials and says the commission is accountable for rectifying that.
Regular meetings: last Thursday of each month, with meetings rescheduled for November and December holidays. This was raised as a motion and passed unanimously.
Creation of committees:
- Executive (Pres/VP)
- CPD budget and resource allocation
- Policy review/development and consent decree
- Community policing
- CPD goal setting and performance assessment
- COPA
- Police Board
- Noncitizen advisory council
- Community engagement
One final proposed committee:
- Ad hoc police superintendent search
The motion to create these committees passes unanimously.
Reports is next on agenda. We hear a report regarding filling vacancies in the Police Board. Citizens can apply to be a member of the Police Board. Vacancies will be filled via an open selection process by CCPSA. https://t.co/GaScSgwSqO
Gomez talks about the noncitizen advisory council. Members of this council will also be selected via an open process. The application will be on CCPSA’s website in early October.
Driver says the commission will call a special meeting where members of the public can comment on the police budget.
Driver says CCPSA will continue asking questions of CPD regarding the gang database and slowness of progress and improvements.
Next scheduled meeting of the commission will be October 27th at 6:30pm.
October 17th (virtual) special meeting will be held regarding CPD budget.
George Blakemore says most police violence is against Black people. He wishes the commissioners well but has reservations about their ability to hold politicians and police accountable. As usual the crowd finds his comments rousing and entertaining.
The next public speaker talks about a wrongly-convicted family member. They say this commission and meeting are so important that they even came without their eyelashes on.
The following public speakers also talks about the story of the same family member wrongfully convicted from the 3rd District. They say their family member is being treated inhumanely and that incarceration is modern day slavery.
Alderman Andre Vasquez thanks all the individuals and coalitions who made the commission possible. Vasquez says the meeting attendee counts need to rise to show politicians and officials the commission has the public’s support. “Show up, because that is what government is about.”
Final speaker is a retired police sergeant from the 11th District. He acknowledges the need for police accountability but also cites stats regarding POC killed by other POC. He calls for police and community cooperation. The crowd is not very receptive to his comments.
This concludes my coverage for @CHIdocumenters. #CHIDocumenters
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