Victim of botched raid calls Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot's inaction a "betrayal"
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot is apologizing for the disturbing police raid that saw 12 male police officers break into an innocent woman's home and handcuff her while she was naked.
The real target of the raid lived next door and was wearing a police ankle monitor.
City officials fought in court to keep the body camera footage of the incident from becoming public. CBS Chicago's Dave Savini broke the story, forcing Lightfoot to respond in a press conference Wednesday.
"Miss Young, knowing that my words will not change what happened to you and your family almost two years ago, I nonetheless say I am sorry," Lightfoot had said.
Anjanette Young, a 50-year-old social worker, was naked inside her home when a dozen armed police officers burst into the wrong apartment and handcuffed her.
After the misunderstanding was cleared up, police were unable to fix her broken door, but instead used an ironing board to wedge it shut. They promised Young someone from the city would come fix it, but nobody came.
The incident occurred three months before Lightfoot took office. She said Wednesday that she had only first heard about the video earlier in the week.
However, it was Lightfoot's law department that tried to not only stop CBS Chicago from showing the video, but also asked a federal judge to punish Young over the video's release.
Lightfoot said she was not aware of those efforts, though she would have stopped them if she had been.
"We are not, nor would we ever seek sanctions against Miss Young. She is a victim," she said.
The city of Chicago had requested a federal court hearing set for December 22, seeking sanctions against Young.
Young said the mayor's public apology had been her only communication.
"The fact that she has spent no effort that I know of to reach out to me or my team ... that's more of a betrayal," she added.
Young also said she has not been told if any of the officers have been disciplined and the city has not admitted any wrongdoing.
Audio captured during the raid appeared to show an officer admitting there had been a mistake.
"It wasn't initially approved or some crap," one voice said.
"What does that mean?" another responded.
"I have no idea, I mean they told him it was approved then I guess that person messed up on their end," the first person replied.
The Chicago Police Department refused to explain the audio recording, but Young said she needs accountability.
The sergeant in charge of the raid did apologize to Young that night. However, the ankle monitor the real suspect next door was wearing should have alerted officers to his location, and records indicate he was home.
"CBS This Morning" co-host Gayle King spoke to Young after the video of the raid was released.
Asked what was getting her through the retelling of her experience, Young said it was the help of her best friend, her faith and her support group.
While she was using her own skills as a social worker specializing in trauma to help herself cope, Young told King it has been difficult for her.
