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| NEWS > 16 December 2009 |
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Complaints against Chicago cop
A backlog of excessive-force complaints against Chicago police officers has grown so large that the agency charged with investigating cops is planning to hire outside investigators to help catch up.
Each of the Independent Police Review Authority's investigators has been carrying a caseload of more than 30, and the number is growing, a problem that the new chief administrator, Ilana Rosenzweig, said is unacceptable.
When Rosenzweig took over the IPRA, formerly known as the Office of Professional Standards, last summer, she inherited a backlog of more than 1,200 cases. That nu... Read more
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 Article sourced from
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Chicago Tribune
16 December 2009
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Chicago Police Department, IL
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Chicago Police Board fires cop
Anthony Abbate was formally fired Tuesday, nearly three years after his off-duty pummeling of a female bartender was caught on video and blasted around the world, tarnishing the image of Chicago police.
The decision, by the Chicago Police Board, was long expected and brought relief to Karolina Obrycka, the woman he attacked, said her attorney, Terry Ekl.
But Ekl also said that without the videotape, Abbate's actions at the bar likely would have gone unpunished.
"What strikes both Karolina and myself is but for this video and the fact that the media ran with it the way they did, Anthony Abbate ... would still be a police officer today," he said. "There is such an obvious code of silence to protect officers who commit acts of misconduct."
The video also was key at the police board hearing after several witnesses refused to testify against Abbate.
Abbate was convicted of felony aggravated battery for the February 2007 attack on Obrycka, but he was spared prison and sentenced to two years' probation. A civil lawsuit is still pending against Abbate, who had been suspended without pay since April 2007.
Police Superintendent Jody Weis, who was hired in the wake of the scandal to restore public confidence, had recommended that Abbate be fired.
On Tuesday, Weis said he was "very pleased" with the decision but cautioned that the allegations against Abbate are "not the norm" in the Police Department. He also said it's speculation to say Abbate wouldn't have been charged without the videotape evidence.
Department officials also said Tuesday that they have added more checks and balances to try to ferret out wrongdoing, including launching an evaluation system that monitors officers and the number of complaints against them.
"We've done a lot of things over the past year which I think ensures the integrity of our officers," Weis told reporters.
The unanimous decision by the police board found Abbate not only attacked Obrycka but also hit a male customer at the bar.
The decision came after a hearing last month in which 30 minutes of the infamous tape was played, showing the off-duty officer showboating and harassing patrons.
On the video, Abbate is heard at one point singing "Desperado" to the jukebox, then later seen punching one friend and tossing another to the ground in apparent anger over a remark about his dog, city attorneys said.
He later charged behind the bar at Obrycka, punching and kicking her, as she yelled repeatedly for him to stop.
Abbate invoked his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination at least 75 times during questioning by city attorneys at the hearing.
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