President Kyle Cooper's update at the July 17 Police Board public meeting:

The case before the Illinois Appellate Court is still pending. As I reported last month, oral arguments were held in June on the issue of whether arbitration proceedings for the most serious police disciplinary cases will be open to the public or take place behind closed doors. It will likely be several weeks if not months before the Appellate Court issues its decision. Then there may be an appeal to the Illinois Supreme Court.

It therefore appears that it will be quite some time before an arbitration process is developed. Then, once a process is finally in place, I expect there will be a backlog of cases to be heard, as all discharge cases in which the accused officer elected arbitration have been on hold for more than a year.

I want to again encourage officers facing the most serious disciplinary charges to consider choosing a Police Board hearing rather than wait an indefinite amount of time to proceed in a currently undefined arbitration process. I assure you that the Police Board is committed to holding expeditious and fair hearings that uphold the due-process rights of all parties. 

I believe that recent data bear out the Board’s commitment in these areas. In the cases the Board recently decided, it took less than nine months from the officers being served with charges until the Board’s issued its decisions.    

Since 2021, the Police Board has decided 45 cases following a full hearing on the charges. In 35% of these cases, the Board ordered the accused officer discharged from the CPD; in another 35% of the cases the Board imposed a lesser penalty than that recommended by the Superintendent; and in about 30% of the cases the Board found the officer not guilty of all charges.

These outcomes 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 evidence 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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