Regardless, when the DOJ does eventually release its report, it could find that there were no “patterns or practices” of civil rights abuses within CPD, thus clearing the department. Or, as it has in 27 other jurisdictions—including Los Angeles, New Orleans, and Baltimore—it could find that CPD has indeed been systematically violating citizens’ civil rights through the use of excessive force, discriminatory policing, unlawful search and seizure, or other practices. Most Chicago observers, including Lightfoot, have previously alluded to the latter outcome as all but inevitable.
Under Bush, the DOJ did investigate police departments for patterns or practices of constitutional violations (a power the department has had since 1995). However, based on data compiled by Frontline, since the Obama administration came to power, affirmative findings of patterns or practices of violations have increased dramatically: Seventeen police departments around the country have been found to have been engaged in systematic violations—nearly double the number under the Clinton and Bush administrations combined. While it’s possible that the police departments investigated under previous administrations simply weren’t doing anything wrong, the uptick in affirmative findings correlates with the civil rights division becoming a well-funded priority under Obama. When he became attorney general, Eric Holder vowed to transform the civil rights division into the DOJ’s “crown jewel,” deploying unprecedented resources and talent to investigate police departments.
Initially, Emanuel waffled in his receptiveness to the DOJ investigation, and has already attempted reforms locally. This including creating the Police Accountability Task Force, which issued a scathing report on the police department in April, and the overhaul of the Independent Police Review Authority, which investigates allegations of misconduct. But police reform advocates are distrustful of City Hall’s willingness and ability to combat police abuses have viewed Emanuel’s efforts with skepticism.
