* CBS 2…

Delores Garner says a team of Chicago police officers burst into her home, executing a search warrant in August of 2019. But, they raided the wrong home she says and left a trail of destruction behind.

“They broke through this door,” she said while showing it no longer locks.

Garner says officers also damaged property inside her home, including a television, mattress, bathroom vanity and her granddaughter’s iPad. It cost her thousands of dollars.

“I have not gotten a dime,” said Garner about the city not compensating her. She said she even tried to file an insurance claim, which was denied because the damage was from a police raid.

This raid at Garner’s home was unlike any of the other botched raids CBS 2 Investigators have exposed since 2018.

Garner’s home is not in Chicago. She lives in suburban Calumet City.

The complaint for search warrant shows how a bad tip from a confidential informant led to Chicago officers getting a warrant approved by the Cook County State’s Attorney’s office and a Cook County Circuit Court judge too. The warrant gave officers the authority to cross into another city looking for a marijuana dealer. […]

CPD does not track these raids to determine if any are wrong raids resulting from officers’ failing to verify they have the correct address before getting a warrant. One of many systemic problems, exposed by CBS 2 Investigators, which led to a consent decree enforcement action demanding CPD make significant search warrant related reforms.

City officials failed to respond to the enforcement action, said lawyers for the consent decree. They filed a motion earlier this month, asking a federal judge to intervene.

1) The police routinely use tips from “confidential informants” to obtain search warrants, yet the police union staunchly opposes allowing the public to submit confidential complaints about police officers.

2) Why is the Cook County State’s Attorney signing off on these warrants?

* Meanwhile, here’s the Rockford Register-Star…

A portion of a more than 760-page criminal justice reform bill approved by the General Assembly would expand the powers of the state to decertify police officers for misconduct.

Until now, a police officer had to be convicted of a felony or certain misdemeanors, such as offering a bribe, prostitution or criminal sex abuse, to lose certification needed to practice law enforcement in Illinois.

If the bill is signed into law by Gov. JB Pritzker, that would change starting in 2022 by providing the Illinois Law Enforcement Training and Standards Board with expanded powers to weed out bad cops if a review panel finds there was misconduct without requiring a conviction. […]

An officer could be decertified if it is determined they committed a felony or a disqualifying misdemeanor, even if they were never convicted or charged, under the bill. Other actions that could result in an officer being decertified include using excessive force; failing to intervene when another officer uses excessive force; tampering with dashboard cameras, body cameras or evidence; and committing perjury or engaging in “unprofessional conduct” such as deceiving or harming the public.

The state board could receive complaints from police agencies, state’s attorneys or the public about police misconduct. The board would conduct a hearing before a newly created Certification Review Panel to determine if decertification is warranted if an investigation finds the complaints are valid.

* News-Gazette…

Supporters also dismissed the notion that the bill was a last-minute surprise. They contended they held multiple virtual meetings in recent months to hear from interested parties, their point being that everyone was up to speed on the bill if they wanted to be.

But Champaign County State’s Attorney Julia Rietz, who testified at one virtual meeting, challenged that claim.

“There is a big difference between saying, ‘We will let you talk’ and ‘We will let you participate in the decision-making,’” she said.

If you want in on the final decision-making powers of the Illinois General Assembly, then run for the House or the Senate. Only the governor has a veto.

*** UPDATE *** Lee Gaines at Illinois Public Media…

Between 2016 and 2019, UIPD arrested more than 3,700 people, according to data obtained via a Freedom of Information request. These arrests include everything from traffic tickets, ordering them to appear in court but releasing them on the scene to physically taking them to jail. Broken down by race, Black people account for about 29% of total arrests, while white people make up 42% of arrests; Asian individuals make up 22% of arrests and Hispanic people account for only about 6% of total arrests.

But during the same time period, more than half (54%) of the 576 people physically taken to jail by UIPD were Black — while only about a third (34%) were white. Black students, however, make up only about 7% of the student body on the campus, and Black people account for about 12% of the metro population, according to Census estimates.

Of those issued traffic tickets or ordered to appear in court, about 24% were Black; while white people accounted for about 43%.