Stories in Policing
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Tensions between police accountability commissioners boil over
The city body tasked with searching for Chicago’s next police superintendent candidates argued viciously over one another’s capabilities on Thursday evening at a monthly meeting.
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Chicagoans hold vigil for man killed by Wisconsin police
An unidentified Madison police officer shot and killed 38-year-old Corey Ruiz last week at close range after he was already on the ground, prompting large protests in the Wisconsin capital.
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North Riverside police decline to charge off-duty Forest Park cop who pointed gun, dragged woman from car
The Cook County Sheriff’s Office is investigating the incident involving Lieutenant Daniel Miller. The cop, who also owns Stars and Stripes Sports Lounge in Indian Head Park, has been involved in at least two deaths on duty.
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Chicago legal reform group lambasts Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke in new report
The Chicago Appleseed Center for Fair Courts found that in Burke’s first 500 days in office, she has pursued policies that “present fewer checks on police power in prosecution and prevent wrongfully convicted people from seeking redress.”
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“Please don’t let his case be forgotten”—families of murder victims say CPD is ghosting them
Supporters and families of victims attended Thursday’s Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability meeting to demand answers.
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Protesters mock ICE, Broadview police at dildo day of action outside detention center
The spectacle saw hundreds of phallic items, big and small, flood the designated free speech zone—a small barricaded area where people have been permitted to demonstrate since President Trump’s mass deportation blitz swept through Chicagoland.
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Chicago cop who killed Anthony Alvarez in 2021 engaged in fatal unreported police chase last year, new lawsuit alleges
Attorneys say they have evidence showing Evan Solano, who chased and shot Alvarez in the back, initiated a deadly “ghost” pursuit that killed 29-year old Eliseo Maya late at night on the Northwest Side in February 2025.
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“Urgency was left in the dust long ago”—few answers from Chicago police superintendent on department collaboration with ICE
Chicago Police Superintendent Larry Snelling defended his officers’ actions amid the Trump Administration’s mass deportation campaign in Chicago, waving off community criticism as people not having an “open mind.”
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“Pressure, influence, and intimidation”—house call by former Chicago cop sparks dispute among police oversight officials
Retired Chicago police sergeant Lee Bielecki’s snooping at the home of a member of the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability is part of a pattern of intimidation and attempts to influence the nomination process for the commission, activists and police district councilors say.
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Border Patrol agents ignored orders to end car chase before gassing Chicago neighborhood
DHS claimed federal agents intentionally hit a fleeing vehicle to try to stop the driver in Chicago’s East Side neighborhood last October—but videos of the 18-minute high-speed pursuit show they actually blew a tire and crashed after ignoring a supervisor’s commands to end the chase.
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Identified: the El Paso BORTAC crew rampaging through the Midwest
One violent duo in particular, U.S. Border Patrol agents Michael Sveum (EZ-2) and Edgar Vazquez (EZ-17), have been frequently seen alongside former commander-at-large Greg Bovino terrorizing crowds with chemical weapons in Chicago and the Twin Cities.
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Police accountability commission under fire: “You have state power—fucking use it.”
Chicagoans shared accounts of Chicago police helping ICE and Border Patrol agents at a public listening session they criticized as long overdue.
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CPD leaders knew cop proposed hiring hitman to kill fellow detective, new federal lawsuit alleges
The lawsuit alleges an officer faced years of violent abuse and threats at the hands of another detective while top brass and city officials have refused to investigate or discipline him.
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Identified: federal agents who pointed gun, punched detainee in Evanston
Unraveled has verified a hate speech-laden X account belonging to U.S. Border Patrol agent Timothy Donahue, who was seen in numerous viral videos during Operation Midway Blitz. He and another agent, Thomas Parsons, have now been identified via public records released by the City of Evanston.
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“Nobody deserves to go through what I went through”
Ex-Waukegan cop, convicted of felony misconduct for 2019 beating, gets jail time on delay.
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Ex-Waukegan cop guilty of official misconduct, cleared on aggravated battery charge
Lake County judge returns mixed ruling in the first of two criminal trials against ex-police officer Dante Salinas.
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Aggravated battery trial begins for ex-cop also accused of murder
Fired Waukegan police officer Dante Salinas faced trial Monday on felony charges stemming from an August 2019 arrest in which he’s accused of breaking bones in a man’s face. He faces separate murder and manslaughter charges for fatally shooting a Black teen in October 2020.
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What happened to Silverio Villegas González
Immigration agents shot and killed an unarmed 38-year-old father outside Chicago on Friday—and their initial narrative of events was quickly disproven by videos captured by witnesses.
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Eyes on the heartland
A vast network of new license plate cameras has exploded across Illinois in recent years—paid for by state grants to fight retail crime. With the federal government clamoring for more information on people’s movements, how worried should we be about leaving our privacy in the hands of Flock Safety?
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DEA agent used Illinois cop’s Flock license plate reader password for immigration enforcement searches
A federal Drug Enforcement Administration agent on a Chicago area task force used Palos Heights Detective Todd Hutchinson’s login credentials to perform unauthorized searches this past January. Group chat screenshots obtained via public records request show the detective and the feds discussing the incident.
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Chicago police, suburban departments seen assisting ICE during chaotic immigration enforcement blitz
Despite official claims to the contrary, federal agents separated families with crowd control support from local police.
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The 15th floor
Inside immigration court in Chicago, where expedited removal has now hit the “sanctuary city” thousands of miles away from the border.
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Suspensions issued to cops who killed Dexter Reed over pattern of violating constitutional rights
Investigations into four other traffic stops involving the tactical officers who shot and killed Dexter Reed last year outline more details of their campaign of terror against drivers on the West Side.
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Cop who shot and killed Dexter Reed quits amid investigations
Alexandra Giampapa was one of four Chicago police officers who fired at Reed in a hail of 96 bullets at a traffic stop last year. Now she’s a cop in Ohio.
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STRIPPED: The Chicago cops who lost their badges in 2024
Officers accused of domestic violence, drug/alcohol abuse, and lying top the list
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Chicago cop faces firing over vehicle pursuit that led to death of innocent motorist
Superintendent Snelling recently moved to terminate Officer Michael Spilotro III for his role in a tragedy that garnered little attention in 2023. Spilotro and his rookie partner violated multiple department policies in pursuit of a stolen vehicle that crashed into several others, killing 25-year-old Venezuelan migrant Angel Eduardo Alvarez Montesinos.
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Abusive cop named in whistleblower suit convicted of assault
Detective Marco Torres, the subject of a suit against the city filed by another police officer accusing the department of covering up domestic violence, was sentenced to one year of probation and electronic monitoring.
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Chicago’s massive DNC cop city included over 135 outside police departments
Recently obtained contracts between CPD and other Illinois law enforcement agencies illustrate precisely how dissent was crushed at the national political convention.
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Cop who killed Anthony Alvarez training new recruits
Evan Solano, now a CPD field training officer, avoided termination in 2022 after chasing Alvarez and shooting him in the back.
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“SheepdogCPD” Detective Shawn Popow faces termination
Superintendent Larry Snelling concurred with the recommendation of an exhaustive 36-page report outlining the officer’s racist social media posts.
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“Somewhere nobody would find her”
Nearly five years later, a six month suspension for violent cop who held ex-girlfriend against her will
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“Y’all jump out on us every day” — Tactical team that killed Dexter Reed was involved in a shooting 24 hours earlier
The 11th District tactical officers were conducting potentially unlawful searches with their body-worn cameras turned off when one of them shot and killed a dog.
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Tactical team who killed Dexter Reed under investigation for over two dozen unjustified stops and searches
A review of police surveillance footage also shows CPD stopping another driver immediately before heading in Reed’s direction.
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14th District Oath Keeper cop interfered with DCFS investigation, removed from SWAT for unknown incident
Police records and social media posts illustrate massive misconduct issues with Sergeant Michael Nowacki, who will also not be disciplined for joining the anti-government militia that helped coordinate the January 6 U.S. Capitol attack.
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Four crooked cops caught unlawfully seizing guns and lying about it now face termination
The Civilian Office of Police Accountability’s investigation sustained 108 combined allegations against the crew, exposing a pattern of misconduct by the 5th District tactical officers.
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Former CPD deputy chief on the ShotSpotter sales team shilling lies about the faulty tech
Kevin Johnson, like other former police officers on the customer success team, is entitled to a police pension in addition to any salary he collects from SoundThinking.
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Crooked Chicago cop crew seen in videos stealing guns, drugs, and cash
Four Calumet District tactical unit officers were stripped of their police powers after filing false reports—in one instance, they even let a man wanted for murder walk away smoking his blunt.
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CPD detective who tweeted selfie at Ariana Grande under investigation for racist and transphobic comments
Dozens of shockingly racist and transphobic social media posts from Detective Shawn Popow are currently under investigation by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability.