#police-accountability

#police-accountability

AUSTIN, Texas The City of Austin has reached an agreement with the Austin Police Association (APA) for a new four-year police contract.The City said the agreement includes oversight provisions and efforts to boost Austin Police Department recruitment, to deal with an ongoing officer shortage.The current contract is set to lapse at the end of March, and this new agreement still has to get the City Council's approval.

Photo by YouTube: APD labor negotiations on Jan. 18
Monday, January 23, 2023 by Emma Freer
With less than three months until the current police labor contract expires, the city of Austin and the Austin Police Association recently returned to the bargaining table and moved closer toward consensus regarding civilian oversight of the Austin Police Department.

The police oversight act aligns with some of the city's proposals for the next police labor contract.Sarah Griffin, the city's deputy labor relations officer, also asked DeLord if removing the Office of Police Oversight from the contract was "a negotiable concept."The police are stakeholders in this discussion."Back at the negotiating table, the city's bargaining team continues to push for increased oversight and transparency, despite pushback from the police union."An approved police contract would supersede any contrary provision in a local ordinance, unless the union contract itself provides otherwise," a city spokesperson wrote in an email to Austin Monitor .

A day after the Chicago Police Board fired the sergeant who oversaw the botched raid on her home, Anjanette Young said the board's decision was "only a small piece of the Justice for which I have been waiting."At its monthly meeting Thursday night, the board voted 5 - 3 to fire Sgt.Alex Wolinski, the highest ranking officer on scene during the February 21, 2019 raid at Young's Near West Side home.

Detectives are investigating after a gunman fled the scene of a confrontation with an off-duty police officer Friday night on the Southwest Side where gunfire was exchanged, officials said.Shortly after 11 p.m., an off-duty officer was involved in a confrontation with an armed individual in a vehicle in the 2800 block of West 47th Street.

On the second day of trial for an off-duty Chicago Police Department sergeant accused of wrestling a Park Ridge teen to the ground and holding him there, defense attorney James McKay questioned a 15-year-old witness.The witness had taken a video of McKay's client, Michael Vitellaro, kneeling on the back of another teenager during an encounter last July, and thefootage garnered significant internet attention.

A 14-year-old boy was fatally wounded, and four others were shot Thursday night in the Fuller Park neighborhood where officers opened fire when the gunman began shooting in their direction, Chicago police said.Shortly before 8:30 p.m., a group pulled out pulled out firearms in the 4200 block of South Wells Street and opened fire at another group.

An off-duty police officer was shot on the Near West Side of the city Wednesday night, according to the Chicago Police Department.At approximately 9:16 p.m., the officer was confronted by multiple individuals who fired shots in the 2200 block of West Maypole Avenue.The officer suffered a gunshot wound to the arm but he was able to return fire.

Green and her attorney, Brian Ford, said they are next seeking to have evidence from the case released.Green, who is currently undergoing treatment for cancer, was locking arms with fellow advocates for police accountability on Friday at the Hall of Justice.She compared her nephew's killing and subsequent case dismissal to other recent cases in which security or law enforcement have killed unarmed Black men in San Francisco.

I recently retired from the Chicago Police Department after 27 years.I spent the last five years investigating officer-involved shootings, including the following one.While I agree that not all shootings are "good," one need only look at the shooting involving Adam Toledo and the horrific treatment the involved officer has been subjected to to fully understand why cops may "quietly quit" doing what they are sworn to do.

Chicago Police were in the middle of a street stop when a gunman opened fire in an alley in the Little Village neighborhood Saturday night.Police shot back, and after a short pursuit, the gunman was placed in custody.No injuries were reported.The police found two handguns in the initial investigation and placed two men under custody at the 2200 block of South Sacramento Avenue around 10:52 p.m.
Two men were standing near the alley, and one of them began shooting at the officers, police said.

The Chicago Police Department has relieved four officers of their police powers amid an ongoing investigation into allegations of police mishandling recovered guns.The officers involved in the alleged mishandling of seized firearms served on the Far South Side's Calumet District, a source familiar with the investigation said.

An officer was struck by a vehicle Friday night on DuSable Lake Shore Drive near Roosevelt Road when the driver reversed and struck the officer who was approaching on foot, Chicago police said.Shortly before 8:15 p.m., officers saw a vehicle matching the description of a vehicle wanted in connection of an aggravated battery to a police officer earlier this month.

A Chicago police officer shot a man in North Lawndale Monday morning, police said, sparking an investigation by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability.According to a statement from the Chicago Police Department, at approximately 11:35 a.m., police officers were traveling in an unmarked squad car when they saw a group of people near a double-parked vehicle in the 2100 block of South St. Louis Avenue.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot said in a pre-election interview with The New Yorker that, "I am a Black woman, let's not forget.Certain folks frankly don't support us in leadership roles."Sad, but true.Yet that doesn't explain why she swept all 50 of the city's wards a mere four years ago to become the city's first Black lesbian mayor.

An off-duty Chicago police officer shot someone who was allegedly committing a robbery on the South Side Wednesday afternoon, police said.It happened in front of the apartment building on the 1300 block of West 90th Street around 12:55 p.m., Chicago police spokesman Tom Ahern said in a statement.When the officer took out their weapon and announced who they were, a struggle ensued between a person involved in the robbery, who was shot, and the officer over the officer's gun, Ahern said in the statement.

Just hours before the elimination of cash bail and other pretrial policies weresupposed to go into effect, the Illinois Supreme Court on Saturday halted the implementation of the landmark policies statewide.The order - issued by the high court on New Year's Eve afternoon and following days of confusion after a Kankakee County judge said the provisions were unconstitutional - said the stay was needed to "maintain consistent pretrial procedures throughout Illinois" while the court prepares to hear arguments on the matter.

A man who prosecutors said fired a gun while with Adam Toledo before the 13-year-old was shot and killed by a Chicago police officer was found not guilty of weapons charges Friday by a Cook County judge after a two-day bench trial.Ruben Roman, 23, stood trial this week before Judge Charles Burns on three felony counts of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon and one felony count of recklessly discharging a firearm.

A group of community-based organizations that fought for the Chicago Police Department's consent decree announced it will boycott a community-engagement plan on home raids, according to a statement from the ACLU of Illinois released Thursday.The Consent Decree Coalition sued for the consent decree "to end CPD's systemic, structural, and institutional racist violence," according to the statement.

A man who prosecutors say was with 13-year-old Adam Toledo on the morning the teen was slain was facing trial Wednesday on weapons charges, a proceeding poised to offer further glimpses into the early morning hours during which Toledo was shot and killed by a Chicago police officer.Ruben Roman, 23, is charged with three felony counts of aggravated unlawful use of a weapon and one felony count of recklessly discharging a firearm, charges that are not related to Toledo's death but rather stem from his alleged actions while he was with the teen just before the shooting.

Politics "I am so ready to get to work on behalf of the Commonwealth and behalf of all of you as the next attorney general."Massachusetts voters chose Democrat and former Boston City Councilor Andrea Campbell to follow in Maura Healey's footsteps as the state's attorney general Tuesday night.

Officers from Mayor Lori Lightfoot's security detail intervened during a robbery Tuesday morning and exchanged gunfire with the offenders, according to Chicago police.No one was struck by gunfire, but an officer was left with minor injuries.In a preliminary statement, police said that approximately at 7 a.m., on-duty officers, assigned to the Detached Services Unit, saw a robbery taking place on the 1800 block of North Monticello Avenue.

The Saturday Tribune article "Officer who shot and killed Adam Toledo faces firing" addresses the politics of Chicago police discipline and the fact that despite a year of investigation, erroneous conclusions call for more hearings that will add another year to Officer Eric Stillman's wait to return to duty.