Proposed Chicago police resource cuts could land city in court, top officials warn

Illinois’ Democratic attorney general and a court-appointed monitor are among those warning Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson that his administration’s proposed cuts to police resources may land the crime-wracked city in litigation.

During a status hearing last week, monitor Maggie Hickey told Judge Rebecca Pallmeyer that cuts to the Chicago Police Department's (CPD’s) Constitutional Policing division could "could be a devastating blow to the future of CPD reforms" under a legally-mandated consent decree, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.

State Attorney General Kwame Raoul separately warned Johnson that adopting cuts proposed in his new budget would place Chicago "at significant risk of being held in contempt of court for failing to comply with the consent decree."

In 2017, then-Mayor Rahm Emanuel, then-Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson and then-Illinois Democratic Attorney General Lisa Madigan entered into the consent decree after the Justice Department reportedly found evidence of systemic civil rights violations within CPD.

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The Chicago skyline. (Getty)

Verbal warnings for use-of-force and requirements to render first aid were among the other agreed upon terms besides the funding. The decree came after Madigan sued Chicago for oversight of its police department, which effectively mooted a separate plan from then-Attorney General Jeff Sessions -- who reportedly opposed consent decrees -- according to NBC News.

In his letter to the mayor, Raoul credited Police Superintendent Larry Snelling with working diligently to deliver on the decree’s commitments to the state and the court, and overseeing a simultaneous decrease in gun violence and homicides.

"I am writing to you today because of my grave concern over your proposed budget cuts to the CPD -- the deepest of which target units within CPD responsible for implementing the consent decree's reforms. I strongly urge you to reconsider these proposed cuts," Raoul wrote in a letter to Johnson obtained by the Sun-Times.

"Now is not the time to undermine the progress the department is making through unwise budget cuts."

He told the mayor that while the progress in Chicago may be frustratingly slow, it remains "quiet and steady" through his work in Springfield.

In comments to Fox News Digital, Raoul signaled CPD itself is working in earnest toward the decree’s goals.

"Superintendent Snelling and his leadership team at CPD are building momentum toward effective, constitutional policing and, ultimately, a safer Chicago."

"I have had positive conversations with the corporation counsel and believe the right leadership team is in place at CPD," Raoul said.

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Illinois Democratic Attorney General Kwame Raoul.

"Now is the time to build on their momentum, not to pull the rug out from under CPD’s progress. Certainly, the city at large is facing budgetary concerns; however, targeting court-ordered reform work for budget cuts is simply not an option."

Both Snelling and Raoul separately pointed to the police department’s handling of the Democratic National Convention in August as an example of the strides it has made in effective policing.

"We have to make sure the allocation of resources reflects the trends we have seen," Snelling said.

"As evidenced during the DNC, no matter what challenges we are presented with, we will get the job done with the highest levels of dedication and professionalism," he said at a City Council meeting on Friday.

Snelling added that the buck stops with him when it comes to police accountability and that he will not back away from public criticism.

"I don’t fear it," he said.

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Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson. (Reuters/Vincent Alban)

After resources were used to create a robbery task force earlier this year, the number of such crimes has gone down by 1,400 over previous statistics, he added.

Snelling responded to an alderman’s question by saying he convinced Johnson to reverse one of the cuts: a nine-job bloc for mental health clinicians in precincts currently lacking them.

"The consent decree is extremely important," CPD Chief Angel Novalez added at the meeting, noting he meets with Pallmeyer and the court monitor’s team on a regular basis.

Johnson’s budget includes a reduction of about 450 police vacancies in areas the Chicago Sun-Times reported would greatly affect the consent decree’s reforms.

Fox News Digital reached out to Johnson’s office, as well as the CPD which referred back to a stream of Snelling’s City Council testimony.