(WBBM NEWSRADIO) — The Chicago Police Department released its new search warrant policy Friday after drawing public scrutiny late last year when the public learned of the botched raid of Anjanette Young’s home in 2019.
The policy, which underwent weeks of public comment, will go into effect May 28.
Among several items, the new policy:
• Requires deputy chiefs or above to review all search warrants;
• Limits no-knock search warrants, which are only to be served by SWAT and in circumstances to present the safest option;
• Requires all officers on a search warrant to use body-cameras;
• Requires a female officer be present for a search;
• Ensures that wrong raids be documented afterward, and that the presence of children also be noted in reports;
Mayor Lori Lightfoot said the new search warrant policy could ensure that “accountability, transparency, and human dignity are the guiding principles of policing here in Chicago.”
Last month, Chicago police’s oversight agency said it found “significant deficiencies” in the department’s policy and training on search warrants while reviewing a raid on the home of Young, who was forced to stand naked as an all-male team of cops searched the wrong home in 2019.
The new policy attempts to rectify the issues in that raid and includes the instructions that all “Department members will treat all persons with the courtesy and dignity which is inherently due every person and will act, speak, and conduct themselves in a courteous, respectful, and professional manner.”
In January, the Office of the Inspector General called for CPD to make immediate changes to its policy on search warrants after details of the Young raid were made public. The Lightfoot Administration initially sought to block release of the material.
(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire & Chicago Sun-Times 2021. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)
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