FOR RELEASE:
December 20, 2023
PRESS CONTACT:
Deanna Shoss, Communications, 773-478-8417
The City of Chicago Office of Inspector General (OIG) has released a follow-up to its 2020 inquiry into the City’s compliance with its Video Release Policy (VRP), for the Chicago Police Department’s (CPD) use of force incidents. To fully assess compliance with the VRP and implementation of OIG’s original recommendations, OIG evaluated each involved City department: the Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA), the Office of Emergency Management and Communications (OEMC), CPD, and the Mayor’s Office.
The VRP was created in the aftermath of the 2015 release of the video of the shooting of Laquan McDonald, an incident that garnered national attention. The city did not publicly release video of the shooting for over a year, leading to widespread public concern and calls for increased transparency around CPD’s use of force. Under the policy, COPA is charged with releasing video of certain use of force incidents within a specified timeframe. To do so, COPA relies on OEMC and CPD to provide video and audio files subject to disclosure under the VRP. CPD, COPA, and OEMC are reliant on the Mayor’s Office to provide the personnel and resources necessary to fulfill the requirements of the Policy.
OIG’s 2020 inquiry found that COPA did not always release materials in the timeframe required by the VRP and that CPD’s guidelines for notifying COPA of VRP-covered use of force incidents were unclear. OIG issued 11 recommendations to the four involved City departments to improve compliance with the policy.
In its follow-up inquiry, OIG found that compliance with the VRP has improved. The median number of days until release is approximately 40 days, meaning cases tend to be released well before the VRP’s 60-day deadline. There were zero late releases between 2019 and 2022, with only one late release in 2023. This is down from 30% of late releases in 2016.
“The City’s implementation of the VRP was an important step in improving transparency around CPD’s use of force. Robust, sustained compliance with the policy holds the promise of increased public confidence,” said Deborah Witzburg, Inspector General for the City of Chicago. “We are pleased to see that implementation of some of OIG’s original recommendations has resulted in significant improvements in timely compliance. Where public safety and police legitimacy are at stake, however, the City cannot afford to lose ground. We urge the City to fully implement corrective actions to ensure that the progress we’ve seen is permanent and meaningful.”
Read the Report
Read the full report, released on December 20, 2023.
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