The Illinois attorney general said on Tuesday that she has filed a lawsuit to bring about court-enforceable agreement for police reform in Chicago because the Trump administration proved itself unwilling to press the matter.
Attorney General Lisa Madigan, D, said she would effectively take the place of the Justice Department in trying to negotiate a consent decree — which would include an independent monitor and be subject to a federal judge’s supervision — to force the troubled Chicago Police Department to make changes.
The Justice Department had during the Obama administration investigated the Chicago Police Department and found that officers routinely used excessive force and violated the constitutional rights of residents. But before department lawyers could negotiate a court enforceable agreement for reforms, President Trump and Attorney General Jeff Sessions took office, and the usual process was interrupted, Madigan said.
“The new administration at the Department of Justice has made it clear it will no longer seek a consent decree in Chicago,” Madigan said at a news conference to announce the lawsuit.
She added later: “We are essentially stepping into the shoes of the Department of Justice, shoes that the DOJ has abandoned at this point.”
Department of Justice spokespeople did not immediately return an email seeking comment. Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel, D, who appeared with Madigan at the news conference and indicated he supported the lawsuit, said he had been talking with the Trump administration about implementing reforms outside of court but the White House seemed to have abandoned that effort.
“It became clear that they are disinterested in reform, that the Trump administration wasn’t even willing to pursue the concept they proposed themselves,” Emanuel said.