Tactical team who killed Dexter Reed under investigation for over two dozen unjustified stops and searches

The Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA) has opened two new investigations into the five 11th District tactical officers who shot and killed Dexter Reed during a traffic stop in March. The scope of the investigations includes at least 28 previous stops and searches conducted by the same team.

Public records obtained by People’s Fabric show that COPA opened the additional investigations in May and June—and new video from a police observational camera shows what appears to be an improper stop of another car by the same officers immediately before they stopped Reed.

In one complaint, a man described “a pattern of harassment and intimidation” by 11th District tactical officers outside of his residence, including multiple stops and searches. In the other complaint, COPA lists 28 locations where “the accused officers allegedly engaged in a series of unjustified traffic stops and searches in the 11th District.”

On March 21, five plainclothes tactical officers driving an unmarked police vehicle pulled over Reed’s SUV, ostensibly in response to a seat belt violation.  

COPA’s Chief Administrator Andrea Kersten, however, called that claim into question in a letter sent to Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling.

“COPA is uncertain how the officers could have seen this seat belt violation given their location relative to [Reed’s] vehicle and the dark tints on [his] vehicle windows,” Kersten wrote. “This evidence raises serious concerns about the validity of the traffic stop.”

During the encounter, which lasted about a minute, Reed appears to have shot one of the officers in the arm. In return, police fired nearly 100 shots at Reed. An autopsy showed he was struck and killed by 13 bullets in the barrage. Video of the killing shows Reed exiting his vehicle unarmed in an attempt to flee for his life as he is hit by additional gunfire from Thomas Spanos, a tactical team officer with fewer than 12 weeks on the team and only two years on the job. 

Spanos, who reloaded his gun twice during the shooting, was assigned to the team despite not meeting CPD’s official requirements. He fired more bullets at Reed than the other four officers involved combined. Spanos—alongside officers Aubrey Webb, Alexandra Giampapa, Victor Pacheco, and Gregory Saint Louis—remains on administrative duties since the shooting. 

Reed was previously shot in a 2021 incident involving another family member. He suffered from PTSD and physical symptoms as a result of that previous shooting, which left him comatose. According to court documents, he was also battling schizophrenia and other mental health issues.

POD video at Lake & Hamlin shows the 11th district tactical team pulling over another vehicle just minutes before they stopped Dexter Reed. Source: COPA

Video from a police camera located at Hamlin and Lake shows the team pulling over a vehicle in the same manner they stopped Dexter Reed immediately prior to the shooting. After engaging with the driver of that car for one minute, the team is seen climbing back into their SUV.  While police are required to complete an Investigatory Stop Report (ISR) after an encounter like this, records show no report was ever filed by officers.

One minute after this stop, officers pulled Reed over. One minute after that, he was dead. 

At the start of the police body-worn camera video released after Dexter Reed’s shooting, officers are seen piling into their SUV from this earlier stop next to Garfield Park. They then take off at a high speed from Hamlin and Lake toward Hamlin and Ferdinand Ave—a distance of roughly a quarter of a mile. This is where they intercept Reed’s white SUV with tinted windows. Within seconds, they curb his car at the intersection of Ferdinand and Avers Ave.

Body-worn camera and POD video show police leaving a previous stop and intercepting Dexter Reed. The video from blocks away shows the number of bystanders in the area as police fired nearly 100 shots.
Content Warning: While this video does not show the shooting, it does contain audio of the shooting.

A study released earlier this year found that 80% of traffic stops by CPD involved Black or Latino drivers, with 22% of all stops occurring in the 10th and 11th districts. According to the report, the practice of using traffic stops to fish for evidence of other crimes has “little to no public or traffic safety benefits.” Just 0.5% of traffic stops resulted in the recovery of a firearm, and 0.3% of stops resulted in the discovery of narcotics.

The Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression (CAARPR) is holding a rally Thursday calling for the end of pretextual stops and use of tactical teams. The group is urging members of the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability (CCPSA) to hold a “community-driven” hearing on CPD’s broad use of traffic stops.