OPINION:
Police misconduct in Chicago is a serious problem that doesn’t appear to be going away (“The Latest: Lawyers say lawsuit over Chicago arrest will win,” Web, Dec. 14). I don’t know how much more abuse black and brown citizens can take, but when the evidence points directly to the accused and officers are still acquitted, no one is safe from the tyranny and injustice that bad police officers are allowed to get away with in Cook County.
It’s clear that Chicago Police Cmdr. Glenn Evans, charge with aggravated battery and official misconduct (and possessed of a record with more than four dozen citizen complaints in his 28 years of service) could get away with almost anything with the help of Judge Diane Cannon, who has been labeled a “loose cannon” herself by the David Protess, president of the Chicago Innocence Project.
Police officers are not above the law, nor the judges who acquit bad police officers. As public servants, judges are held to a higher standard of ethics and accountability to the public than the police. The judicial code of conduct is to assure the public that judges will act fairly, impartially and promptly in deciding cases. When judges make decisions that are contrary to direct evidence, they become a menacing disservice and are guilty of contributing to the lack of public trust in the criminal justice system.
It’s time we start holding judges accountable for the decisions that they make on the bench in the name of public safety. This isn’t the first case over which Judge Cannon has presided that has been questionable and outraged the public, and it won’t be the last — unless Chicagoans elect someone capable of protecting the public’s interest and bringing fairness and better accountability to criminal cases involving law-enforcement officers. In my opinion, Judge Cannon has plenty of impeachable offenses under her robe and should be removed from office.
WILLIAM J. BOOKER
Founder, Black Men Matter
Park Forest, Ill.
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