President Kyle Cooper's report at the June 18 Police Board public meeting:

As we have reported at previous meetings, the Fraternal Order of Police, which represents Chicago police officers below the rank of sergeant, has appealed two rulings that are part of the March 2024 Cook County Circuit Court decision that allows officers to choose to have the most serious police disciplinary cases heard by an arbitrator rather than the Police Board. The case is before the Illinois Appellate Court, where the union is challenging the Circuit Court’s rulings that arbitration proceedings be open to the public and that accused officers may be suspended without pay while their case is pending.

The Appellate Court held oral arguments yesterday. Each side vigorously argued its position before a standing-room-only crowd in the courtroom. This is clearly a complex and important case, and it likely will be at least several months before the Appellate Court issues its decision. Then there may be an appeal to the Illinois Supreme Court.

Given the long amount of time it likely will take to resolve the arbitration issue, I want to take a moment to encourage officers facing the most serious disciplinary charges to elect to have a Police Board hearing rather than wait an indefinite amount of time to proceed in a currently undefined arbitration process.

The Board closely monitors the amount of time needed bring disciplinary cases to hearing and decision, and keeping delays to a minimum is a priority because the accused officer is often suspended without pay when the charges are filed. The case we just ruled on this evening took less than nine months from the officer being served with charges until the Board’s final decision and ultimately resulted in finding the officer not guilty of the alleged misconduct.

The Board is committed to holding fair hearings that uphold the due-process rights of all parties.  Accused officers have the right cross-examine witnesses, present evidence in their defense and in mitigation, and fully argue their positions. It is currently unclear whether that will be the case with the arbitration.

Since 2021, the Police Board has decided 43 cases following a full hearing on the charges. In 36% of these cases, the Board ordered the accused officer discharged from the CPD; in 34% the Board imposed a lesser penalty than that recommended by the Superintendent; and in 30% of the cases the Board found the officer not guilty of all charges.

These outcomes, contrary to some public statements I have seen, reflect a Board that takes seriously its responsibility to impartially assess each case on its own merits and ensure due process is afforded. I can assure you that, for as long as I serve as President, the Board will remain committed to that responsibility. The members of the Board are not ideologically driven and do not prejudge cases. Rather, we approach our role as neutral decision-makers—like baseball umpires—tasked with calling balls and strikes based solely on the specific facts presented and the applicable law in each case.

The Police Board website, Chicago.gov/PoliceBoard, will continue to keep the public informed of any new developments in the ongoing litigation and of the status of disciplinary cases currently before the Board. I encourage you to check the News and Police Discipline sections of our website for the most current information.

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