Accusations of Widespread Racial Profiling and Mounting Civil Rights Lawsuits
Following a year-long investigation, four members of an eight-person team working in the Chicago Police Department’s (“CPD”) Near North Side’s 18th District, which covers parts of Lincoln Park, Old Town, Gold Coast, Mag Mile, River North, River East and Streeterville neighborhoods, were relieved of police powers and two others, including the team’s sergeant, were reassigned to other parts of the city. The team in question has been named in over 100 misconduct complaints, more than any other officers in their department, according to a Civilian Office of Police Accountability (“COPA”) memo sent to Police Superintendent Larry Snelling last fall. A large part of the issue that have led to lawsuits are purportedly over allegations of racial profiling drivers leading to pretextual traffic stops and searches, which some attorneys have labeled the “new stop-and-frisk” policy, alluding to the troublesome practice and its similarities to the now generally disfavored police practice where officers would briefly detain, question, and pat down individuals for weapons based on a “reasonable suspicion” of criminal activity. Chicago Inspector General Deborah Witzburg emphasized the need for transparency from government into investigating police misconduct, including the new “Public Safety Complaint Network” dashboard that displays information about officers accused of misconduct in the past and any previous accusations against officers accused of misconduct together. Such tools can be valuable for attorneys investigating claims of widespread or isolated instances of misconduct in the CPD.
Wrongful Conviction Lawsuits Against Former Detective Lead to Million Dollar Settlements
Recently, the Chicago City Council approved approximately $29.2 million in total settlements to resolve four separate lawsuits accusing former CPD Detective Reynaldo Guevara of framing people for murder in the 90s. The settlements range from $16.6 million to $800,000, with accusations that convictions were based on coerced confessions, some the results of “horrendous brutality and [psychological] abuse,” at various times pressuring witnesses to make false statements, and withholding evidence from defense attorneys in the initial cases that saw these four individuals receive lengthy sentences for crimes they say they did not commit. It is worth noting that Guevara was never charged with a crime and was never disciplined by CPD for these allegations before retiring in 2005, even as accusations of similar conduct in dozens of murder cases have emerged as the accusations have seemingly gained traction and/or notoriety. Despite this lack of discipline, Guevara recently asserted his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination to 200 questions in a lawsuit accusing him of beating suspects into false confessions. Guevara would not be the first CPD detective in recent memory to face widespread allegations of abuse, and facing financial pressure, the Chicago City Counsel Finance Committee Chair Ald. Pat Dowell says that they are exploring the possibility of approving a larger potential payout structure to alleged victims of Guevara, similar to the $90 million deal reached last year for the City to resolve over nearly 200 lawsuits tied to another disgraced former-officer, former Sgt. Ronald Watts.
These recent examples, taken together, illustrate exactly why having a defense attorney who deeply understands police misconduct, practices, and investigative procedures is so critical, not just ultimately for civil rights plaintiffs, but for anyone charged with a crime or caught up in a police encounter. Oftentimes, many of those subjected to unlawful searches may not have initially recognized that the stops were unconstitutional. A defense attorney well-versed in Fourth Amendment law and CPD’s documented history of pretextual stops can challenge the legality of a stop and search from the very first encounter, getting any potential evidence suppressed if criminal charges emerge, preserving the record/evidence in other instances, and/or identifying patterns of misconduct that become the basis for civil litigation. Indeed, one of the issues many encounter when later seeking redress is that the potential victim of unconstitutional conduct may have felt pressured to plead guilty to a lesser charge in their criminal matter, which makes recovering damages for any allegations of police/prosecutorial misconduct much harder or impossible in civil litigation. For anyone facing charges or who has been subjected to an unlawful police encounter, the type of attorney and their experience matter tremendously. An experienced lawyer who knows how law enforcement generally operates, from the opaque processes for receiving certain documents/evidence, how to navigate CPD complaint records, and the general tactics officers use during stops, interrogations, and lineups, can be the difference between a wrongful conviction, even decades in prison, or alternatively a dismissal and financial recovery for a wrongful or false arrest and/or malicious prosecution.
