A Chicago police officer decides to arrest a driver for a DUI after pulling him over and conducting a breathalyzer test. The driver is a middle-aged man who becomes agitated when the officer says he is under arrest. The driver squirms out of the police officer’s hold and after a violent struggle ensues, then the driver takes the first steps toward running away. The police officer pulls out a weapon and shoots the driver, causing severe injuries. The driver files a lawsuit against the police officer, but there is no video footage of the incident.
The police officer claims that the driver was threatening his life and that the use of force was justified. Illinois has recently passed a new police reform law that will require all Illinois police officers to have body cameras no later than 2025. Officers must keep the body cameras on at all times with limited exceptions when they are engaged in police work. During these limited exceptions, anytime police officers believe someone has committed a crime or is in the process of committing a crime, they must turn the cameras back on and notify the suspect that they are being recorded. Other new policing duties include the following:
Limitations on Arresting Suspects in Illinois
The new Illinois law now requires police officers to be able to articulate that a suspect has committed an underlying criminal offense before arresting him or her for resisting arrest. Additionally, law enforcement officers, with some exceptions, cannot arrest suspects for class B and C misdemeanors. Instead, they must give the offender a ticket and notify them with a 21-day court hearing. Both of these new police regulations attempt to limit the arrests that occur in Chicago and, as a result, limit the amount of police brutality. The new law has also changed the requirement for using deadly force against a suspect. It will be harder for police officers to justify using deadly force under the new law.
More Police Accountability Measures are in Place
The new law also expands the definition of police misconduct. Police officers can be held liable if they fail to provide facts describing an incident or misrepresent facts during an investigation into a law enforcement employee’s conduct. Additionally, if one police officer knows about another police officer’s unlawful conduct and withholds that information in an inquiry they are in violation of the new law. Police officers cannot choose not to disobey Illinois’ new body camera requirements as they are phased in. All of these violations are considered serious Class 3 felony charges with penalties of two to five years in the Illinois Department of Corrections.
Contact a Cook County Criminal Lawyer Today
Are you a police officer accused of violating Illinois’ new police reform laws? If so, your freedom and future are on the line. When you need a lawyer, experience matters. At Glasgow & Olsson, our award-winning criminal defense lawyers have a proven track record of success in many police officers in high-profile state and federal criminal cases. You can see defense attorney Thomas Glasgow on local Chicago news when he fought to get a former police officer’s conviction vacated. Contact Glasgow & Olsson today to schedule your initial consultation to learn how our legal team can fight for your rights.