Chicago’s Civilian Office of Police Accountability has recommended the officers involved in dragging a woman from a car by her hair and smashing the car’s windows at the Brickyard Mall be stripped of their police powers and reassigned to desk duty.
Police spokeswoman Karie James said Friday morning the officers still had their police powers. She said did not know if the officers had been reassigned to desk duty.
At a news conference Thursday, police Supt. David Brown said he’ll be taking “swift action” as soon as he has COPA’s findings, but he didn’t provide further details.
Bystanders captured video of the encounter amid a tense time at the mall, where looting occurred Sunday.
COPA, which is tasked with investigating police misconduct, suggested to Brown the cautionary measures should remain in place during the course of their investigation into the incident.
Meanwhile, Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx’s office announced Thursday it was conducting an independent review of the officers’ conduct.
Mia Wright, 25, who was dragged from the car by her hair, and her family still do not understand why police targeted the car in the first place and want answers.
Wright was in the front passenger seat of her cousin’s car Sunday when police began to smash the windows of the vehicle with batons and order everyone out.
An officer grabbed Wright’s hair, which had been wound into a bun, and yanked her from the car, Wright said.
While Wright was on the ground, the officer knelt on her back and neck. Wright, who got a piece of glass in her eye from the shattered window, was held overnight at a nearby police station, she said.
Wright was charged with misdemeanor disorderly conduct after the incident. Wright and her family are calling for the charge to be dropped.
