Prosecutor Asks for Cameras for DUI Cops
Cook County's top Traffic Court prosecutor has asked the Chicago Police Department to supply video-camera-equipped squad cars to officers who make frequent drunk driving arrests.


July 03, 2009 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Prosecutor Asks for Cameras for DUI Cops

Article provided by Law Office of Christopher M. Cosley
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Cook County's top Traffic Court prosecutor has asked the Chicago Police Department to supply video-camera-equipped squad cars to officers who make frequent drunk driving arrests.

Lawrence X. O'Reilly, supervisor of the Cook County state's attorney's traffic division, named 28 officers who regularly have DUI cases before the Traffic Court. O'Reilly said he wants their police cruisers equipped with cameras to record their arrests.

Last year, prosecutors dropped more than 150 DUI cases after accusing Chicago police officer John Haleas of perjury. Previously honored as a top DUI officer, Haleas is now accused of falsifying evidence in DUI cases. He has said he's not guilty of the charges.

Another officer under investigation

Long-time Chicago police officer Joe D. Parker also has a history of making DUI arrests. He's under investigation after a video recorded during a DUI arrest of an Oak Lawn man showed dramatic differences from the descriptions of a stumbling, flailing drunk Parker had written in his arrest report.

After viewing the video showing the man calmly, steadily performing the field sobriety tests administered by Parker, prosecutors dropped all charges against him.

Critics have long complained that Chicago has been slow to upgrade its cars with video cameras. They say the cameras help ensure that officers use proper police procedure when making arrests.

City loses lawsuits

The city has been hit hard in recent years by lawsuits by citizens complaining of abuse by Chicago police. In just the first six months of 2008, Chicago paid out more than $62 million in police-related lawsuits -- more than Los Angeles, Houston, Philadelphia, Phoenix and Dallas put together, according to a Chicago Reader investigation.

Critics say camera-equipped squad cars deter police misbehavior while also providing solid visual and aural evidence supporting good arrests.

Only 264 of the city's 2,500 police cars are equipped with video cameras. The city plans to add cameras to 275 more police vehicles with cameras with $2 million in federal stimulus money.

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