Chicago City Council votes against settlement in police misconduct case

[July 21, 2023]  By Andrew Hensel | The Center Square

(The Center Square) – Many on the Chicago City Council say the evidence will show "no wrongdoing" by officers involved in a fatal shooting after city lawyers proposed a $2 million settlement with the victim's family.

The shooting took place in 2014, when during a foot chase with an alleged suspect, a Chicago police officer shot the individual. The man later died from his injuries.

City lawyers proposed the settlement, but the city council rejected that proposal Wednesday.

Chicago Ald. Chris Taliaferro, a former Chicago police sergeant, told The Center Square why they voted to reject the lawyer's calls for a settlement.

"In reviewing the facts of the case, I believe that the city has enough evidence that, if presented to a jury, would find that the officers acted properly and were not negligent in their duties," Taliaferro said.

Mayor Brandon Johnson was asked about the city council decision on Wednesday.

"Along with the city council, I have a fiduciary responsibility to ensure that our investments are speaking to our values," Johnson said. "It is unfortunate that we have such a painful history, not just here in Chicago, this is something that the whole country, quite frankly, has dealt with. If you look at the diaspora as a whole, where brutalization has taken place anywhere, Black people settle, this has been a dynamic, where brown people settle, it has been a dynamic."

A Chicago police vehicle
Andrew Hensel / The Center Square

By going to court after rejecting the settlement, the city could be at risk of using more taxpayers' funds to pay for lawyers, court fees and potentially an even bigger payment if they are to lose the case.

Taliaferro said he is confident the evidence will show no wrongdoing.

"All of our settlements present some facts whereby the city believes that the information could be damaging to a case if heard by a jury. This is part of the assessment. However, oftentimes, we do not present the case and settle for that reason," Taliaferro told The Center Square. "However, under these circumstances, the majority of my colleagues believe that there is enough evidence to hold that the officers and the city are not liable for damages."

A May investigation by ABC 7 shows that lawsuits surrounding wrongful convictions and misconduct issues could cost Chicago taxpayers about $1 billion.

There have been no court dates scheduled for the case.