According to a coalition of neighborhood organizations, the policy still does not clearly define the boundary between First Amendment-protected gatherings and those involved in unlawful activities like looting.
Less than two months remain until the Democratic National Convention, and a group of neighborhood organizations expressed “serious concerns” on Thursday regarding the Chicago Police Department’s recently updated mass arrest strategy.
Following a warning from the so-called consent decree coalition that an earlier version of the policy “eviscerates protections” that are otherwise afforded to protestors, the department undertook a reform effort that culminated in closed-door sessions approved by the federal judge supervising the agency’s court-ordered reform push
The coalition admits in a court document that the most recent draft policy has a number of “improvements,” such as outlawing the contentious containment strategy known as “kettling” and forbidding police from detaining demonstrators for infractions unless they endanger public safety, cause property damage, or violate a dispersal order.
The group does point out that “serious deficiencies remain,” though.
The coalition claims the regulation does not clearly distinguish between groups of people enjoying First Amendment rights and those participating in unlawful activities like looting.
It further fails to “distinguish between unlawful actions that could result in physical harm to people or property and unlawful but nonviolent civil disobedience.”
Concerns over the policy’s delayed use of force reporting system are also raised in the filing.
According to the group, this procedure “conflicts with best practices” and encourages police to use force.
Additionally, the new regulation does not go far enough in limiting the use of pepper spray on demonstrators.
“The Coalition demands that CPD make a public commitment to upholding individuals’ First Amendment rights to participate in demonstrations at the DNC and elsewhere; that mass arrests will only be used as a last resort at the DNC; and that police will not resort to needless force or retaliation against demonstrators,” the document reads.
A police spokeswoman stated in a statement that the policy is “rooted in constitutional policing” and that it is the result of months of consultation.
The spokeswoman stated, “We worked to address concerns from the consent decree coalition during the policy development process and use its feedback to inform the current draft, which is now posted for public review and comment.”
“This policy, which is informed by our First Amendment Rights policy, offers guidelines on the processing of individuals taken into custody during coordinated multiple arrest incidents.”
George Floyd’s response to CPD clouds planning The coalition makes several allusions in the filing to the department’s problematic handling of the demonstrations that followed George Floyd’s death at the hands of the police in May 2020.
The department’s operational problems and pervasive abuses were documented in scathing reports written by the city’s inspector general and the monitor in charge of the department’s reform initiatives. Since then, Police Supt.
Larry Snelling has stated that training for the convention in August has been designed with lessons learned in mind; however, the coalition has disputed that assertion.
According to the court document, “CPD has failed to learn from and operationalize the lessons that the department should have implemented after its violent and unlawful response to the protests of summer 2020,” as evidenced by its overemphasis on mass arrests in response to large groups of people exercising their First Amendment rights.
The coalition’s growing concerns come just weeks after Inspector General Deborah Witzburg’s office issued a negative judgment that CPD was “outflanked, under-equipped, and unprepared to respond to the scale of the protests and unrest” in 2020.
There is no replacement for prolonged, in-depth interaction with disadvantaged communities Community organizations that battled for the consent decree—a court order requiring police reforms—make up the coalition.
However, the coalition voiced its displeasure at being shut out of the mass arrest policymaking process in the new filing.
The filing claims that although the Coalition’s enforcement strategy and the ensuing court-ordered negotiations improved the initial draft of the policy, they cannot replace extensive and ongoing consultation with the affected communities before significant modifications to the Consent Decree and CPD policy are made.
“The Consent Decree requires this engagement, and it is essential moving forward to make sure CPD policies reflect community priorities and best practices, as well as to prevent last-minute negotiations in front of significant events or deadlines like the DNC.”