Activist groups seek new probe into Chicago cops' ties to Oath Keepers
Residents of the 33rd Ward, social justice groups and local officials demanded an outside investigation into Chicago police officers with ties to the Oath Keepers extremist group two months after CPD officials chose not to discipline them after what the groups called an “inadequate” investigation.
At a news conference outside Horner Park fieldhouse Saturday afternoon, local residents and members of the Chicago Alliance Against Racist and Political Repression called on the city's inspector general to investigate the officers named in the probe— including Officer Alberto Retamozo, who is assigned to the 17th District, which covers parts of Albany Park and Irving Park.
“We need the inspector general to open an investigation into this matter to ensure the investigation is handled with integrity,” said Grace Pacino, a member of the alliance. “It’s a failure on [CPD’s] part to act in good faith. … We can’t allow this.”
Paulina Vaca, a resident of the 33rd Ward, read a statement from Ald. Rossana Rodriguez in which the alderperson, who represents the ward on the City Council, mirrored the groups’ demand for a renewed investigation.
“We need to open an independent and thorough investigation into this matter,” Rodriguez said in the statement. “Such a brief investigation fails to demonstrate that this matter was taken seriously. … It is unrealistic to expect an agency to conduct an impartial audit of its own actions.”
The groups also demanded the names and complaint histories of officers working in the 17th Police District and to end pretextual stops, in which officers use minor violations to pull over a vehicle in order to find probable cause for another crime. They call for the disbanding of CPD’s tactical teams, which have come under fire after officers shot and killed Dexter Reed during a traffic stop.
“Our community wants to know the individuals on our streets policing us,” Anthony Tamez, a 17th police district council member, said. “As a district councilor, I want to reiterate calls from my neighbors to reopen the investigation into police officers affiliated with the Oath Keepers.”
In May, the Southern Poverty Law Center, a civil rights group, sent a letter to Mayor Brandon Johnson and CPD Supt. Larry Snelling asking them to conduct a more thorough investigation.
About two weeks ago, the inspector general’s office said it reviewed CPD’s Bureau of Internal Affairs investigation into the officers with ties to the Oath Keepers and “found BIA’s investigation to suffer from deficiencies materially affecting its outcome.”
The inspector general’s office also said officials could have charged the officers with breaking CPD rules against bringing “discredit upon the department,” though Timothy Moore, deputy director of the BIA, declined and said none of the officers had “intentions of joining a violent extremist group.”
Retamozo and 17th District Police Cmdr. Jesse Alvarez declined requests for comments.
“We should not have Oath Keepers on our force,” Steve Spagnolo, chair of the 17th police district council, said after the concerns were raised at the meeting Saturday.
Contributing: Tom Schuba, Dan Mihalopoulos