THREAD: An outrageous move in Chicago. Mayor Lori Lightfoot now wants to use funds police already stole from communities to sue (!) vulnerable relatives of people cops allege are in "gangs." This isn't gun violence prevention. It's more devastation. More:
chicago.suntimes.com/2022/1/19/2289…
chicago.suntimes.com/2022/1/19/2289…
New Chief Defender of Chicago, Sharone Mitchell (@SharoneMitchJr) knows well: The plan to sue alleged gang members & their families is "a distraction from proven solutions that our communities desperately need.”
The case against the measure is clear.chicago.suntimes.com/2022/1/19/2289…
The case against the measure is clear.chicago.suntimes.com/2022/1/19/2289…
In Chicago & elsewhere, cops use "gang" to sweep up anyone they want. In NY, if you wear any color on the color spectrum, you're gang involved. We've gone from "large gangs w/ well-defined leadership" to more than 800 small, loosely affiliated groups. Who'll wind up getting sued?
Suing people cops claim are in a "gang" won't prevent gun violence. What will it do? "Divert finite legal resources away from potentially effective violence reduction efforts [like] continuing to trace the origins of recovered crime guns & pushing for gun dealer accountability.”
Lori Lightfoot's "plan" to sue people cops claim are in a "gang," will further harm vulnerable communities: “The ordinance includes little protections to prevent, for example, a grandmother from being sued for her car after her grandson is pulled over while driving it.”
Chicago Mayor Lightfoot's plan to sue people cops claim are in a "gang" will not offer prosecutors any new tools: “State and federal laws give prosecutors ample power and legal mechanisms to seize assets associated with criminal activity.” It's a total waste.
The entire plan relies on "civil asset forfeiture." Legalized theft by the state. "Ripe for abuse." It raises civil liberties concerns & "offers little public safety value. It would be a step backward for Chicago after other jurisdictions have abandoned or reformed such tactics.”
Rather than wasting time on costly measures that undermine the effort to prevent/address gun violence, city leaders should focus on what works - investment in communities, education, and employment.
“Serious problems deserve serious solutions. This ordinance is not that.”
“Serious problems deserve serious solutions. This ordinance is not that.”
"Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s proposed Victims Justice Ordinance – which would authorize the City of Chicago to bring civil lawsuits against alleged gang members and the people around them, often unsuspecting family members — will not reduce gun violence." chicago.suntimes.com/2022/1/19/2289…
"Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s proposed Victims Justice Ordinance will not reduce gun violence. It will make intra-community violence worse by making poor communities poorer, making anti-violence workers’ jobs harder & further eroding police-community relations."chicago.suntimes.com/2022/1/19/2289…
More: "Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s plan to seize property from gang members is great if you like terrible ideas."chicagotribune.com/columns/rex-hu…
For more, please follow Cook County's Public Defender Office (@CookCoDefender). The latest is that in a recent hearing, no one spoke in favor of Mayor Lori Lightfoot's misguided plan.
https://twitter.com/CookCoDefender/status/1484610615410892800?s=20
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