Chicago‘s local government approved the creation of a civilian police oversight board with power to make proposed changes to the city’s law enforcement budget.
The seven-member group, approved by both the city council and Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Wednesday, will have the power to issue two-thirds votes of no confidence against police superintendents or board members. The oversight body, which is being called the “first of its kind,” will also recommend changes to the Chicago Police Department’s budget.
“With the passage of this historic legislation, we have truly marked a significant milestone in our mission of bringing further transparency to our police department and its accountability agencies,” Lightfoot said. “Before I even became mayor, I promised on the campaign trail to pave a pathway for civilian oversight of the police, and today, I am proud to be able to deliver on that promise.”
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“I am grateful to all of the aldermen, community members, and other stakeholders who helped to get this groundbreaking proposal across the finish line and am beyond thrilled to give our residents further opportunities to hold those who are sworn to protect and serve them accountable,” she added.
In February 2023, Chicago residents will vote on members of the oversight board, and “the candidates in each District receiving the greatest, second greatest, and third greatest number of votes will assume office on the first Tuesday in May,” according to the mayor’s press readout.
Prior to the recent development, the city employed the Civilian Office of Police Accountability, which conducts investigations into officer-involved shootings and other matters. The new oversight board will have the power to appoint an administrator of COPA or remove someone from the investigative group.
Alderman Matt Martin called the move “the strongest civilian oversight law in the country.”
“It took two years longer than I expected, but today the Chicago City Council passed the strongest civilian oversight law in the country,” he wrote in a tweet. “Before I ran for Alderman, in the wake of the murder of Laquan McDonald, I helped write the consent decree — which many observe is the floor for reform that must be built up in order to reimagine public safety.”
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Several localities throughout the United States have taken similar movements as the “defund the police” movement gains momentum in left-leaning cities and states. New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo vowed his state will offer more “community-based services” to improve the relationship between civilians and police when he declared a disaster emergency on gun violence.
Minneapolis’s city council also voted last year to strip its police department of $8 million in funding, though it appeared to reverse course in February.
