Citizens Alert is Chicago's only police accountability organization working for systemic change in law enforcement agencies and humane, effective law enforcement while advocating for victims of brutality and misconduct.

The important work of Citizens Alert is made possible by your generous support which is always needed and appreciated.  Donate now by clicking on the icon below

or see our Contributions Page to send your donation.

Goals of Citizens Alert

The goals of Citizens Alert are to make law enforcement agencies accountable to the public by:

• Acting as civil rights advocates for victims of police brutality and abuse;
• Providing information, counsel, and referrals;
• Monitoring police conduct and policies to assure greater accountability to the public;
• Building coalitions to involve other organizations in specific police issues;
• Recommending policy changes that encourage more humane and effective law enforcement;
• Educating the public on criminal justice matters.

Citizens Alert Events & Info

Celebrating 40 Years of Struggle

2008 Symposium

Citizens Alert convened its second Symposium on Civilian Oversight of Chicago Police in February, 2008.  Building on the success of establishing a civilian review mechanism for Chicago in such a short time, the Coalition determined two immediate priorities - the powers of Chicago Police Board and analysis of the pending union contract between the City and the Fraternal Order of Police.  Examination of these two priorities is necessary to protect the integrity of the Police Review Authority to assure that neither the provisions of the contract nor any adverse action by the police board undermine the effectiveness of the IPRA.  Time is of the essence in both instances, committee meetings are underway and interested volunteers are welcome to participate. 

Review Process of the Chicago Police Board

 

*The Superintendent of Police:

can accept or dispute recommendations by IPRA. If he disagrees with the recommendation, he has to put his objections in writing and meet with the Chief Administrator of IPRA. If the Chief Administrator and the Superintendent cannot reach an agreement, the issue comes before a 3-member-panel of the Police Board, where the Superintendent and the Chief Administrator both give their testimony. If the case eventually is sustained and goes to the Board, the three members of the panel cannot be involved in any further decisions concerning that case.

** if IPRA decides that the case falls into another jurisdiction, they refer it to Internal Affairs.

Police Board Members

• Members of the Police Board are appointed by the mayor , “with the advice and consent of the City Council”. This means that the mayor appoints the Police Board members, and the City Council has to approve of the appointment. All board members serve 5-year terms, which are renewable. All board members must be civilians, but there are no regulations about whether they have to be residents of the City of Chicago, and how they are to represent the citizens of the City of Chicago geographically as well as in terms of ethnic and racial minorities and social background.
• All Police Board meetings are open to the public. Information about these meetings can be found on our page: Chicago Police Board Meetings:

Board Members:

Demetrius Carney, President

Partner, Perkins Coie, LLP

First appointed: March 7, 1996 – current term expires: August 10, 2009

Scott J. Davis, Vice President

Partner, Mayer Brown , LLP.

First appointed: October 25, 1989 – current term expires: August 10, 2008

Phyllis L. Apelbaum

CEO/President Messenger Courier Association of the Americas (MCAA)

First appointed: August 1, 1996 – current term expires: August 10, 2007

Patricia C. Bobb

President, Patricia C. Bobb and Associates

First appointed:May 20, 1998 – current term expires: August 10, 2007

Victor M. Gonzalez

Senior counsel, UniCare Health Plans

First appointed: February 17, 2000 – current term expires:August 10, 2009

Dr. William C. Kirkling

Dentist

First appointed: August 1, 1996 – current term expires: August 10, 2008

Rev. Johnny L. Miller

Pastor at Mount Vernon Baptist Church

First appointed: May 28, 1998 – current term expires: August 10, 2008

Arthur J. Smith Sr.

President, Arts Enterprises

First appointed: October 15, 1986 – current term expires: August 10, 2007

George M. Velcich

Partner, Belgrade and O’Donnell PC

First appointed: May 20, 1998 – current term expires: August 10, 2009

Staff Members:

Max A. Caproni, Executive Director

Clarisa A. Boatman, Supervising Clerk

Michael G. Berland, Thomas E. Johnson, Jaqueline A. Walker, Hearing Officers (Attorneys presiding over the hearings and reporting on cases. All three hearing officers served part-time in 2006.)

Issues:

• Community-based representation: for racial, and ethnic minorities, immigrant communities, as well as the socially underprivileged.
• Appointment transparency: Since the Chicago Police Board deals with issues that are of concern to the community, its members should be elected/selected by the community. Currently, members are appointed by the mayor alone and approved by the City Council, a process less than transparent for public.
• Term limits: some of the Board members have been on the Police Board since the 1980s. Term limits would guarantee more rotation on the Board. Also, three Board members’ terms are currently expired, and three more will expire in August 2008.
• Presence at the hearings. In the past, members of the Police Board in many cases were not physically present at Police Board hearings and merely read the transcripts. This has been widely criticized, but is also a big issue for police board members, who have full-time jobs and serve on the Board as volunteers only. And while reading the transcripts only may not be enough to give certain issues full consideration, reading alone takes a large chunk of time out of the Police Board member’s time. Increasing the number of Board members might be a solution to this problem.