Welcome to Newswire — your weekly guide to Chicago government, civic action and what action we can take to make our city great, featuring public meeting coverage by City Bureau’s Documenters.

Quote of the Week

“Consent searches are essentially a short cut, they’re a way around actually having probable cause, they have been shown to be incredibly ineffective and inefficient at actually getting the things they’re supposed to be getting. They’re also among the most racial disparate policing tools that exist, so from my perspective, they should be used rarely.”

— Commissioner Aaron Gottlieb articulating his position on the proposed Chicago Police traffic stop policy.

[Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability, May 29, 2025]

Policing shortcuts

The Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability and Chicago Police Department remain at odds over their differing policy proposals that would dictate how and when Chicago police officers can conduct traffic stops. 

One of the main points of conflict, including among the commissioners, surrounds the conditions under which a “consent search” would be allowed.

CCPSA Executive Director Adam Gross explained that the 4th Amendment of the Constitution protects people from unreasonable searches and seizures. In Illinois, there are certain instances where a police officer can search your car without consent, including if they have a search warrant or specific information to suspect a car has evidence of a crime , Gross said.

If an officer doesn’t have a warrant or enough information to legally search a car, they can ask a driver to give permission, making it a “consent search,” Gross said. Currently, Gross noted, CPD doesn’t have a policy explicitly documenting when an officer can do a consent search. 

“If a police officer pulls over a car, they have a lot of discretion about whether to ask to do a consent search because there are no specific policy requirements,” Gross said. “For example, an officer could ask to do a consent search if they just suspect there’s evidence of criminal activity in the car. They don’t currently need anything more specific.”  

Under the traffic stop draft policy proposed by Chicago Police, an officer cannot ask to do a search unless they have “specific articulable information regarding a suspected criminal activity” separate from a traffic law violation. “It couldn’t just be a general feeling or a hunch,” but it doesn’t necessarily need to meet a higher legal standard, Gross said. 

Officers must explicitly ask if they can do a search, explain what they want to search and why, and record themselves asking for permission and receiving consent for a search on their body-worn camera “if so equipped.” The officer must also wear a camera during the search “if so equipped,” document the use of a consent search in a report and tell the person they can revoke permission for the search at any time, among other requirements.   

Some commissioners don’t agree that officers should be allowed to do a consent search based on the “specific articulable information” standard. Six commissioners want a stricter requirement for these searches, but they do not agree what that should be, according to an April letter weighing in on the draft policy. Several commissioners also want to require written consent forms for these searches, and some want to eliminate the rule allowing officers to search a car if the driver grants permission without being asked.

“When you’re talking about giving consent to search, you’re talking about two parties that are not equal,” Commissioner Gina Piemonte said. “The police officer has pulled you over, you could be nervous, you could be frightened, you could not understand. Lots of times, people sign things that they don’t really understand what they’re signing. 

“This is definitely a way around the law to investigate further, to look further.”

This process of finalizing the traffic stop policy is ongoing. It would require sign-off from the Illinois Attorney General and the Independent Monitor overseeing the department’s federal consent decree. 

What you can do:

Submit feedback: Community members can submit feedback on both CPD’s policy language and the CCPSA’s proposed revisions. Read about the policies here and submit comments by June 16 using this form.

Attend a CCPSA meeting: Check for upcoming CCPSA meetingshere at the City of Chicago website. Anyone may submit a written public comment by delivering it to the public meeting or by emailing it to CommunityCommissionPublicComment@cityofchicago.org.

Time to go

Chicago Public Schools CEO Pedro Martinez marked his last Board of Education meeting after his firing in December. In his final comments, he noted the achievements of his tenure, including getting schools back on track from disruptions caused by the pandemic and improving student outcomes.

He also pushed back on recent reports about the district’s measles vaccination rates. Citing state data, a recent Sun-Times report found that less than half of CPS have 95% or above vaccination rates, considered the standard for herd immunity against measles. Martinez countered that the data wasn’t current, and said more than 95% of CPS students are fully protected against measles as of April 2025. 

“The data does not reflect the work we’ve done over the past six months to bring up our vaccination rate,” Martinez said.

Martinez also touched on the district's budget process for fiscal year 2026, including the release of school budgets and the need for additional revenue. Martinez’s exit comes as officials try to close a $529 million deficit,  which could result in cutting hundreds of staff positions.

The ever-present debate about charter schools, their funding and their closures, came to a pause after the Board voted to renew contracts with 21 charter schools, months behind schedule. The Board also approved a resolution to enforce new requirements and oversight on charter school operators. That issue became increasingly prevalent in the past year when Acero charter school network announced a plan to shut down seven of its 14 campuses, affecting 2,000 students and 500 employees. The Board later voted to save five of the seven slated to close. 

What you can do:

Catch up on the headlines:

  • Chicago Public Schools plans to release school budgets relying on unlikely city, state money | Chalkbeat Chicago

  • Frustrated parents at 2 Acero charter schools closing this year weigh options: ‘Our hands are tied’ | Block Club Chicago

A version of this story was first published in the June 4, 2025 issue of the Newswire, an email newsletter that is your weekly guide to Chicago government, civic action and what we can do to make our city great. You can sign up for the weekly newsletter here.

Have thoughts on what you'd like to see in this feature? Email Civic Editor Dawn Rhodes at dawn@citybureau.org.