Yvette Loizon, partner at Clifford Law Offices and a member of the Chicago Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability, called for an external investigation of the Chicago Police Department’s ties to extremist groups during a commission meeting on Thursday, October 26, 2023.
The Commission continues to be a voice for the public in enhancing public safety and law enforcement accountability. Loizon expressed the importance of an unbiased investigation, stating, “Community members deserve the comfort of knowing that this investigation was done by a neutral party.”
Loizon, along with the six other appointed members of the civilian-led panel, recommended that the city’s Inspector General thoroughly investigate officers named on an Oath Keepers list with the goal of identifying extremists to be “rooted out” of the department. The Commission’s recommended investigation would be broad and include an audit of the police department’s “processes and practices for identifying and disciplining officers who associate with extremist or bias-based organizations,” and instate policies that forbid officers from associating with “criminal organizations.”
The Oath Keepers is one of the largest far-right militias in the United States and was at the center of the January 6, 2021, insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. Loizon cited a report by the Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project that linked 27 Chicago police officers to the anti-government organization, including nine active duty officers.
To read more about the Commission meeting, click here.