36 Comments - NotMe - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 11:12 am: “The tape thing” really underscores what Flessner thinks about this horrific incident. He still doesn’t get it. - Publius - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 11:19 am: Not hearing much from the law and order crowd. Not sure how any of the officers invovled still have thier jobs. I konw the police feels like they are under siege but they have to realize that people won’t put up with this forever. - H-W - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 11:21 am: First, thanks for bringing this up, Rich. As a sociologist, I think it equally important that we remember this is not just a Chicago thing. It is an issue that transcends jurisdictions. It is a county, city, state and national issue. That Chicago screwed up and is struggling with admitting they screwed up, does not mean that these same inhumane forms of policing and subsequent responses to injustices do not manifest themselves elsewhere. In fact they do, which is why the issue of limited immunity from prosecution for government agents, the granting of no knock warrants when there is no just cause for believing violence is imminent, and the militarization of local police forces must be addressed by legislative bodies at all levels. I would say, “before someone gets hurt or killed,” but the evidence of this is already overwhelming, and unjustifiable. We need to reign-in policing where ever it is excessive. We do not need to wait any longer. - Dotnonymous - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 11:22 am: I know how it feels like to stand naked in front of a mixed group of male and female officers…I had the same experience… in prison. I can not imagine how it must have felt for a (totally innocent) modest Woman. Humiliation was the point…all ways. - Cool Papa Bell - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 11:28 am: =Cuffed, naked and terrorized by the police= This whole thing is a whole lot less of a big deal if an officer right away just runs and gives her a blanket and lets her sit down on the couch. (It blends into the background of “just another woman’s door wrongly kicked in CPD”. Its still wrong - grossly so - but it becomes just another example of what being a black citizen in America is like) But they all choose to not give Ms. Young the right to be treaded with just a shred of human decency. I hope that one of those cops wanted to cover her up and make perhaps the worst night of life better - but felt they couldn’t because of the reaction from the rest of the squad. So terrible. And right now, I just want all these people fired. Gone, adios, see you later. I want the city to be able to do that. I want it possible to do so without these cop suing to keep their jobs, or getting paid on the way out. Anyone who was in that room and didn’t act at a base level to protect Ms. Young is undeserving of being a police officer. - Larry Bowa Jr. - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 11:29 am: “this should be yet another wakeup call for the CPD, the city’s corporation counsel and the mayor…” With all due respect, CPD doesn’t do “wake up calls.” Why would they need to? They have more political power than any mayor ever will in the post-machine era. Mayors come and go, protection rackets endure. - peter - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 11:34 am: how long are they going to continue denying knowledge of this prior to last week? i don’t think anyone’s buying it and i can’t fathom how making that kind of time-limiting, timeline-establishing statement is beneficial for anyone right now. - Streamwood Retiree - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 11:40 am: =This whole thing is a whole lot less of a big deal if an officer right away just runs and gives her a blanket and lets her sit down on the couch.= Absolutely. especially with body cams rolling. That would apply even if they had the right address and she was the perp. But as to firing. How about the upper echelons? it looks to me like the grunts were following orders. Doesn’t the Lieutenant and captain hold responsibility? And the judge who issued the warrant? “No waarant shall issue .. probale cause .. sworn testimony .. describing the person to be seized”. Do I remember that wrong from my Eighth grade Constitution test? The coverup and blow back is the worst part… as always. - Rich Miller - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 11:41 am: ===it looks to me like the grunts were following orders=== You are in desperate need of new eyeballs, or a new brain, or a new heart, or all three. - West Sider - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 11:52 am: =it certainly shows how human beings are treated like numbers on a spreadsheet by their own city= We could have a long conversation about the absurd frequency of “no knock” warrants- but that will wait. It comes down to this: at every step- from informant to yesterday’s Corp. Counsel resignation, Anjanette Young has been treated like a object- anything but a Child of God. She was a win, a number, a “them”, a thing. And that is the lived experience of huge numbers of citizens in Chicago and across the nation. The only meaningful difference is everyone can see it now. - Boone's is Back - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 11:53 am: Two things strike me about this statement which reads to me like an opportunity for the caucus to score political points without proposing anything meaningful. First, where is the ire and heat for the Mayor in all of this? If you swapped out Lori for Rahm in this exact same scenario the blowback would be deafening. Second, where is the Caucus’s statement on the 71-year old woman who was shot in her home and killed last night? I’ll wait for that one. Police reform and accountability is a serious problem in the city that needs a serious dialogue and real solutions. However, turning a blind eye to the overwhelming violence in they city that is an equally grave problem just perpetuates excuses for this kind of cruelty and lack of empathy. - Feldy - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 12:10 pm: Sometimes the police are their own worst enemies. If you want the respect, support and appreciation of all segments of society, stop doing this stuff. From our vantage point out here, it’s outrageous. - Streator Curmudgeon - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 12:14 pm: I think the issuance of the warrant is indeed part of the problem, because if the warrant had been correct, none of this would have happened in the first place. Maybe, just maybe, some severe disciplinary action needs to be taken against the person who puts the address on the warrant, when a warrant turns out to be wrong. If there are no repercussions, unverified warrants will continue. The “that was too bad” attitude by bureaucracy is not acceptable. Whether the person inside the dwelling is guilty or innocent, they deserve dignity and privacy. When police officers, through cynicism or apathy, fall into a “them and us” mindset, they need retraining. Innocent, upright citizens like Ms. Young still exist. The fact that she was handcuffed, naked, for ten minutes, shows a frightening disregard for a human being. - Jocko - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 12:23 pm: ==I’m resigning because of the firestorm around the whole tape thing,== …and the fact that I (a) didn’t know or (b) knew and did the wrong thing. Mark sounds like an adolescent trying to justify coming in after curfew. - Dan Johnson - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 12:24 pm: Lame duck: license police officers. FOP has lost credibility on this particular issue. That bill alone is reason enough to convene a lame duck. I hope it passes unanimously and FOP decides to come to neutrality. - Precinct Captain - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 12:27 pm: - Boone’s is Back - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 11:53 am: Many more things aren’t striking you. - Rich Miller - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 12:30 pm: ===because if the warrant had been correct, none of this would have happened in the first place=== Until the next time. Mistakes happen. People are human. The shackling of a naked woman like that was neither a mistake nor human. - Funtimes - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 12:32 pm: I cannot agree more strongly with what Cool Papa Bell said. Amen. - Rich Miller - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 12:32 pm: === However, turning a blind eye=== Nice misdirection. Get back to the topic at hand. - The Most Anonymous - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 12:52 pm: Thank you for calling out the tone deaf, ignorant, white privilege use of the word “botched” to describe something so grossly dehumanizing. - Responsa - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 1:36 pm: It looks for all the world like Flessner was sleepwalking though his responsibilities. Nice title, nice salary, nice perks. Now the city will lay out big bucks (it doesn’t have) to pay Young who deserves a payday for what was done to her. Twice. - Streator Curmudgeon - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 1:43 pm: ==Mistakes happen. People are human. The shackling of a naked woman like that was neither a mistake nor human.== Police would probably argue that handcuffing her was not a mistake, that it was standard procedure. Not covering her properly WAS a mistake. But to say that “Mistakes happen. People are human” is probably what the person who made out the warrant said. No, that kind of dismissal is not acceptable either. More diligence at that level would eliminate “the next time.” - dbk - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 1:50 pm: It was a bad warrant (wrong address), and there was no excuse for that - the person they were seeking was wearing a traceable ankle bracelet. It would have taken a few seconds to confirm his location. And he was a male. The raid itself - I watched it, together with Ms. Young’s observations and comments interspersed - was just atrocious, I could scarcely force myself to watch. Somewhere I saw that Chicago spends around $100 million a year in payments to the victims of the CPD. The city should be made to pay heavily for this miscarriage of justice; probably there will be a settlement, because it’s unlikely the Mayor and CPD would want a court case - also imnsho, everyone involved should lose their job. Until that starts happening, horrific incidents like this one will continue. Also yes to licensing for police, serious licensing. - H-W - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 2:34 pm: Certainly, the judge who signed the warrant put his/her authority on the line. The warrant is the primary cause of this assault on an innocent woman, and all associated with the warrant share culpability. As to the actions of the police, if it takes them 10 minutes to decide a naked woman is not a threat, they are incompetent police officers. They are culpable for harms caused. As to the idea of licensing, however, I think too much faith is placed in this idea as a curative. It may reduce the number of bad actions some. But unless all jurisdictions and agencies within a state/region are compelled to require licenses, then police who fail to meet “certification” requirements and who “cannot or will not be retrained,” will simply move to another community where licenses are not required. I assume police officers performing egregious and criminal actions would do so anyway if caught and pressured. Licenses only make since in the broad sense, if all communities are required to possess them. - Amalia - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 2:43 pm: first to the horrible treatment of the woman, as said before, cover her up as soon as possible. they have to secure the site, which can take more than a few seconds, but cover her up. that is decency 101. and as the Supt. said, even if someone is the correct subject of a warrant, treat them decently. and there could be children around, factor that in. did the warrant have the wrong address? what was presented to the judge? and OED definition of botched is (a task) carried out badly or carelessly, botched word also used in the headline of that article by Charise Frazier. - Payback - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 2:48 pm: “…I just want all these people fired.” That’s the failing of licensing, it implies that at worst, police criminals who hurt or kill citizens only lose their jobs, rather than go to prison. Licensing is a distraction in the area of police accountability. The fact that AG Kwame Raoul is “working” on licensing when he failed to place criminal penalties in his Body Cam bill when he was a state senator indicates that licensing is not designed to be a serious deterrent. Make body cams mandatory in Illinois. Shut them off or delete/tamper with evidence, it’s a felony. Colorado did this, why not Illinois? Remove qualified immunity for police criminals. Colorado did it, what’s the hold-up here? Upload body cams and dash cam videos directly to a special unit within the IL AG’s office, and give the state AG the ability to directly indict police criminals with statewide grand juries, instead of having to shop around for special prosecutors from outside the counties, like Berlin prosecuting Van Dyke. Police who commit crimes should be treated like all other criminals- prosecuted and imprisoned. One Jason Van Dyke in prison will deter one hundred police who are breaking the law. - Rich Miller - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 2:57 pm: ===But unless all jurisdictions and agencies within a state=== Hence, state licensing. You’re creating a problem that wouldn’t exist. - TheUpperRoom - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 2:59 pm: The most disturbing part (besides the obvious huge entrance and scaring the woman minding her own business to death) was the cold and callous way they refused to explain and calm the situation. Hopefully she gets a big settlement for her troubles. Even if you grant the cops a “mistakes happen” pass, there was no excuse for how they treated in the moments after realizing their mistake. - n-t-c - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 3:00 pm: ===this is not just a Chicago thing=== === H-W 11:21 am === So what? It shouldn’t happen to anyone, anywhere. The dehumanizing treatment (and other bad policing) happens *in Chicago* because it is tolerated *in Chicago* by the city’s leadership. The mayor, the superintendent, and the city council give the police free license for this behavior. Supt. Johnson was certainly not ignorant of the history of the CPD. That he failed to communicate to his subordinates a cultural benchmark that such behavior would not be tolerated, and that the compounding of such behavior by even a hint of race-based discrimination would be carefully scrutinized and if proven out would open the gates of disciplinary hell, is exactly why these kinds of incidents persist. And even if the incident happened under Emanuel, the current-day dissembling by Lightfoot, who ran at least in part on her record of involvement in the city’s police accountability machinery, plus her own law department’s view that they were authorized to play hardball with an obviously innocent victim of police misconduct, further bolster the license to misbehave. “Meet the new boss/Same as the old boss.” - Anonymous - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 3:30 pm: Why blame the FOP for a mistaken address on a search warrant? What did the FOP have to do with with the issuing the warrant. I would think that would be authorized by a supervisor. Aren’t the Sgts, Lt’s and Captains of the Chicago Police Department represented by the PBPA? Wouldn’t a supervisor be in charge of the officers on the scene? - Anonymous - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 3:41 pm: it is my understanding once the officers realized the error with the mistaken address they apologized profusely to Ms. Young, even offering to fix things that were broken during the warrant execution. I realize this doesn’t make up for what was done, and it shouldn’t have happened. - The Most Anonymous - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 4:44 pm: === I realize this doesn’t make up for what was done, and it shouldn’t have happened.=== @Anonymous then why say it? Sometimes it’s just best to be quiet and listen to other people’s experiences and learn how you can be a better member of society. Because this totally out of touch comment ain’t it. You’re as clueless and as heartless as the police officers who handcuffed her and told her to relax if you’re giving them credit for saying sorry. They unsuccessfully tried to fix her broken door. They should get absolutely no kudos for this. Also her broken sense of personal security and trust at the hands of these police officers’ violating her space will never ever be “fixed.” I’m going to assume you never watched the video or full CBS newsreport about it. Or did you watch it all and you’re just lacking when it comes to empathy and judgement? - MyTwoCents - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 5:48 pm: Yes, cops are human and mistakes happen. However, law enforcement is one of those professions where there is a small margin for error because if things go bad, they can have a tremendous impact. Obviously mistakes will never be eliminated, but there also isn’t enough done to reduce mistakes. Licensing will help with that, so would changing the type of cops hired. Law enforcement needs to be recruited from a variety of backgrounds, not just predominately male military veterans. Also, with this specific example procedures can be put in place, with extra oversight to ensure that warrants are properly filled out and properly executed. No judge should sign off on a warrant if there are any discrepancies and the judge involved should be disciplined. Skepticism is a good thing, that includes everybody involved in the process, from the police supervisors to the judge. There is nothing wrong with asking questions before a decision is made. - Da Big Bad Wolf - Tuesday, Dec 22, 20 @ 7:35 am: === Why blame the FOP for a mistaken address on a search warrant?=== The FOP has fought every reform tooth and nail. - ILFOP State Lodge President - Tuesday, Dec 22, 20 @ 3:40 pm: - Da Big Bad Wolf - your Statement regarding the FOP fighting every reform tooth and nail is as disingenuous as it is untruthful. The FOP is, and has been, proactively participating in the intense national, state, and local conversations about law enforcement, including the calls for reform, adopting the Safe Communities Strategy through the Illinois Law Enforcement Coalition which is made up of various Law Enforcement Associations in Illinois including the Illinois Association of Chiefs of Police and the Illinois Sheriff’s Association. This Illinois Law Enforcement Coalition has been working on strategies to improve community safety and to enhance the trust and support of the community members we serve. The Coalition members all support reforms that would improve the criminal justice system for all Illinoisans. The Illinois Fraternal Order of Police is willing to work with anyone interested in solving the complex policy issues surrounding the reform movement here in Illinois. At the same time, we will not violate 2 important basic principles: Reforms can’t end up harming the safety of the public we serve, or the safety of the officers charged with protecting the public. And for the record… We have not even been at the table to fight reform “tooth and nail” The Illinois Fraternal Order of Police State Lodge, Labor Council, and Chicago Lodge 7 were all deliberately excluded from the ongoing talks between the Attorney General’s office and members of the General Assembly regarding police certification/de-certification and other issues. These matters being discussed without their input will have long-term consequences for law enforcement officers and the citizens they serve. - Anonymous - Tuesday, Dec 22, 20 @ 4:04 pm: - The Most Anonymous - Monday, Dec 21, 20 @ 4:44 pm: It was said to give some perspective that perhaps the officers involved were not as “heartless” as you make them out to be. Perhaps not all of us are as perfect as you. Police officers are human. They make mistakes. Its important to mention they recognized the mistake and apologized for it. Sorry, comments for this post are now closed.