illustration by Sophie Lucido Johnson
Chicago Task Force Releases Report on Police Misconduct
Mayor Rahm Emanuel’s Police Accountability Task Force released a report last Thursday that stated that the public’s mistrust in the Chicago Police Department (CPD) is deeply justified, and that radical changes must be implemented as soon as possible. The 183-page report recommended, among many other things, the abolition of the city’s Independent Police Review Agency, which has not investigated enough complaints filed against police; the implementation of body cameras on all officers at all times, and changes to the contracts the city has made with Chicago’s police unions. The report was scathing in its criticism, citing an embarrassingly long history of racism and racial bias within the police force, and demanding that public citizens have more input on the workings of the CPD. The report comes amidst growing protests around yet another teenager (16-year-old Pierre Loury) shot and killed by a Chicago police officer earlier this month.
Officials Charged in Flint Water Crisis
Criminal charges have been filed against three men over the contaminated water crisis in Flint, Michigan; they are the first to face legal accusations. The three men included two officials with the state Department of Environmental Quality — Stephen Busch and Michael Prysby — as well as Water Quality Supervisor Michael Glasgow. The felony charges include neglect of duty, misconduct, and conspiracy to tamper with evidence; an additional charge cites that the men have violated Michigan’s Safe Drinking Water Act. The charges were filed on Wednesday by the state attorney general, Bill Schuette, who added that these charges did not preclude any additional charges, as the investigation is ongoing.
Deadly Earthquake Devastates Ecuador
More than 500 people were killed and thousands were wounded in a 7.8-magnitude earthquake that rattled the central coast of Ecuador on Sunday. People could feel the earthquake from the country’s capital in Quito — which is more than 100 miles from its epicenter. This was the strongest earthquake to strike Ecuador since the 1970s; cities inside the country were completely destroyed. The cities of Portoviejo and Pedernales sustained the most damage; between the two, about 370 buildings were destroyed, according to the New York Times. Some geologists have estimated that the force of this earthquake was 20 times greater than the earthquake that struck Japan this past Saturday. The country’s president, Rafael Correa, has called upon 4,600 members of National Police and 10,400 members of the armed forces to assemble an emergency response team.
