Chicago Police Should Create 'Early Warning System' To Detect Bad Cops, Watchdog Says
(CBS) -- The head of a government watchdog group says the most overdue reform the embattled Chicago Police Department can make is a sort of "early warning system" for troubled officers.
WBBM Political Editor Craig Dellimore reports.
Andy Shaw, President and CEO of the Better Government Association, says when a police officer has two or three complaints of excessive force against him, officials should take a closer look.
Jason Van Dyke, the white police officer who shot and killed black teen Laquan McDonald in October 2014, has 18 complaints against him and yet no disciplinary action.
Shaw says there should be a system in place that sends up a red flag if a cop has two or three complaints of excessive force or other misconduct against him.
He acknowledges many of the complaints are unfounded. That said, he adds, there should be some kind of "intervention" process in place for officers with a paper trail of complaints.
"I'm not suggesting all of these complaints are justified. Perps on the street are making up stories about coppers all the time to try to get out from under the rap. I understand that many, many, many of these are not founded, they're not legit. But when there's a certain number of them against an individual police officer, it's time for an intervention," Shaw says.
The BGA's Andy Shaw is the guest on "At Issue," which airs 9:30 a.m. and 9:30 p.m. on Sunday.