RESOLUTION
WHEREAS, Following the release of video of the shooting of Laquan McDonald, Mayor Emanuel initiated a review of the Chicago Police Department and the Independent Police Review Authority by establishing the Police Accountability Task Force. Mayor Emanuel charged the Task Force with assessing the Department and making recommendations for change in the areas of community relations; oversight and accountability; early intervention and personnel concerns; and video release protocols; and
WHEREAS, Six days after Mayor Emanuel appointed the Police Accountability Task Force, the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division and the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Illinois began a joint investigation of the City of Chicago's Police Department and the Independent Police Review Authority; and
WHEREAS, The Joint Investigation was conducted with the full and open cooperation of the City and the Department. The Joint Investigation assessed the Department's use of force and evaluated polices, training, reporting, investigation, and reviews related to officer use of force, as well as the Department's and IPRA's systems of accountability. The Joint Investigation further addressed racial, ethnic, and other disparities in the Department's force and accountability practices, and assessed how those disparities related to the community's diminished trust in the Department; and
WHEREAS, The Police Accountability Task Force actively engaged the community by meeting with a broad and diverse range of subject matter experts, organizations, law enforcement, and residents of the City, as well as conducting community forums and allowing residents to submit their experiences and suggestions by letter, through the Task Force's website, and through social media, all to ensure that its findings and recommendations were based on input from all parts of the City; and
WHEREAS, On April 13, 2016, the Police Accountability Task Force issued a report containing comprehensi...
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