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1
SENATE RESOLUTION

 
2    WHEREAS, Following the release of the Laquan McDonald
3shooting video in November of 2015, Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel
4appointed the Police Accountability Task Force to complete a
5report on the Chicago Police Department; and
 
6    WHEREAS, It has been determined by the Police
7Accountability Task Force that the Chicago Police Department
8has been plagued by officers who contribute to the systemic
9racism that fosters oppressive policing tactics and has
10thoroughly failed to maintain the trust of both
11African-American and Hispanic communities; and
 
12    WHEREAS, High profile cases, such as the Laquan McDonald
13shooting, have shed light upon a culture of cover-ups, evidence
14manipulation, falsified reports, and a complete lack of
15accountability within the Chicago Police Department; and
 
16    WHEREAS, Decades of community complaints involving stops
17without justification, verbal and physical abuse, unnecessary
18arrests, and detainment without legal counsel have rarely been
19recognized as legitimate by the Chicago Police Department; and
 
20    WHEREAS, Both Hispanic and African-American communities
21have disproportionately been the victims of the institutional

 

 

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1racism within the Chicago Police Department; and
 
2    WHEREAS, African-Americans make up roughly one-third of
3Chicago's population, and yet they were the subjects in 72% of
4investigative street stops that did not lead to arrests in
52014; and
 
6    WHEREAS, African-Americans were also the subjects in 46% of
7traffic stops in 2013 and justifiably feel targeted by those
8sworn to protect and serve their respective communities; and
 
9    WHEREAS, Chicago taxpayers bear the burden of settlement
10costs associated with unnecessary detainment, injuries due to
11the use of excessive force, and wrongful death; and
 
12    WHEREAS, In December 2015, the United States Department of
13Justice began a pattern and practice investigation into: 1)
14whether the Chicago Police Department routinely violates the
15civil rights of citizens; 2) the Department's use of force
16policies and practices; 3) the Department's systems of
17accountability; and 4) whether racial or ethnic disparities
18exist in these areas; and
 
19    WHEREAS, Though trust cannot be built overnight, working
20toward strong police and community relations is essential in
21helping to combat violent crime in the City of Chicago; and
 

 

 

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1    WHEREAS, While many Chicago Police Department officers
2commendably perform their duties with the intention of lawfully
3ensuring public safety and building relationships with the
4citizens in the communities in which they live and work, the
5prevalence of predatory policing steeped in bigotry in poor
6communities of color diminishes those efforts; therefore, be it
 
7    RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE NINETY-NINTH GENERAL
8ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we urge the Chicago
9Police Department to fully cooperate with the U.S. Department
10of Justice investigation and to begin implementing
11recommendations outlined in the recent Police Accountability
12Task Force report; and be it further
 
13    RESOLVED, That, because it is the sworn duty of the Chicago
14Police Department to police fairly and not to allow prejudices
15or animosities to influence on-duty decisions, we encourage the
16Department to respect and uphold the civil rights of all
17citizens, to be transparent, and to improve the Department's
18systems of accountability.