The Chicago agency dedicated to providing civilian police oversight has recommended that an officer seen on video using a homophobic slur against a protester should have his police powers suspended or modified during an investigation into the incident.
According to a statement issued Saturday, the Civilian Office of Police Accountability made the recommendation to Police Supt. David Brown this week, asking him to “identify and modify the duty status, or temporarily police power” from the officer seen in the video, which was published by multiple outlets this week after protests late last month.
“COPA makes this recommendation while it further works to identify the officer and assess the events and circumstances surrounding this active investigation,” the office said in a statement.
Later Saturday, the Chicago Police Department issued a statement of its own, saying homophobic slurs are “inexcusable, and has no place in the Department.”
“We do not tolerate this kind of behavior, which is why we have opened an investigation into this incident and will take appropriate disciplinary action immediately as we work to identify the officer involved,” the department said in its statement.
Anyone with complaints about mistreatment at the hands of an officer can call 311 and file the complaint with COPA, according to officials.
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Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot said that misconduct by officers will not be tolerated, and encouraged residents to report such abuses to 311.
“Police misconduct, from harming residents to covering badges to using homophobic language, will not be tolerated,” she said.
The video, posted to Facebook, showed a police officer walking away from a group of protesters when a traffic cone was thrown at him. The video then shows the officer turning around and yelling a homophobic slur at the group.
