Three days after Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx announced an online form to field allegations of police misconduct, her Republican challenger called the move a “stunt” and announced he created a website of his own to field allegations of misconduct against Foxx.
Former Circuit Court Judge Pat O’Brien announced Sunday his campaign set up an “online hotline” for Cook County residents to report complaints about Foxx.
O’Brien called Foxx’s effort to gather reports of police misconduct in Cook County disingenuous and unnecessary because other agencies are already tasked with investigating such complaints.
“As murders and gun violence soar in one of the bloodiest summers in Chicago, Ms. Foxx has set her sights on police officers, the men and women who provide our first line of defense from crime and violence,” O’Brien said in a statement.
Reached by phone, O’Brien said Foxx’s effort — a form that can be filled out and submitted on the state’s attorney’s website — was a stunt, but his website was not.
“This isn’t a stunt at all, it’s a way for us to gather more information to put in front of voters to help decide whether they want to return her for another four years in office,” he said.
Foxx campaign spokeswoman Alex Sims said “we don’t have any comment.”
O’Brien’s website — www.foxxfails.com — allows for complaints pertaining to “negligence, misconduct or malpractice that occurred in Cook County only.”
Complaints will be reviewed by former Cook County prosecutors and could be referred to an investigative agency, such as the state’s Attorney Registration and Disciplinary Commission, which investigates attorney misconduct, O’Brien said.
Relevant complaints will be posted to social media to “ensure transparency,” O’Brien said.
About 30 messages had been received through the website as of Monday evening, O’Brien said. Several contained “verbal graffiti” aimed at Foxx. Others were were from victims or relatives of victims complaining that “cases were not handled properly or charges they thought were appropriate weren’t approved,” O’Brien said.
The election is slated for Nov. 3.
