The Chicago Police Department announced Wednesday it plans to make widespread changes to the way it investigates murders in light of a critical report from a police research organization.
The Police Executive Research Forum concluded the CPD’s Bureau of Detectives is understaffed, overtasked and often working without a uniform procedural edict.
The group recommended the department:
- Create a designated homicide unit
- Increase the number of detective areas from three to five — a move already in the works
- “Develop a consistent approach to investigating homicides.”
The report also called for increased cooperation between detectives and prosecutors in the Cook County State’s Attorneys Office, as well as more thorough communication between detectives investigating murders and those tasked with investigating nonfatal shootings.
“Many of the issues highlighted in this 116-page report have long been known to the department,” Supt. Eddie Johnson said. “Other findings show a fresh set of eyes can bring things into light that have been overlooked previously.”
The report, conducted at the behest of the CPD, found that manpower and organization within the detective bureau were both lacking.
“The Bureau of Detectives is understaffed, and there are not enough sergeants to oversee individual teams of homicide detectives,” the report stated. “The CPD does not have a tracking mechanism to identify the number of cases assigned to each detective and who the lead investigator is on each case.”
So far in 2019, the department’s murder clearance rate stands at just under 47%, according to figures distributed by the department Wednesday. That’s up from 40% in 2018, 33% in 2017 and 29% in 2016.
As of last week, the Chicago police had recorded 422 murders in the city in 2019. The report said the department has about 128 detectives throughout the city assigned to investigate homicides. Overall, the department — with a little more than 13,300 sworn members — has 1,127 officers assigned as detectives.
Johnson noted about 600 detectives have been added to the bureau in the past two years.
While the terms are sometimes used interchangeably, “homicide” and “murder” have different meanings. “Homicide” is the manner of death and it’s decided by the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office, though it is not always deemed a criminal act. For example, if a robbery victim shot and killed their attacker, that death would be ruled a homicide by the medical examiner but not classified as a murder by the CPD.
Since 2013, the detective bureau has been divided into three areas that span the city: Areas North, Central and South. Earlier this month, Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced the reopening of two detective areas on the West Side. Johnson said Wednesday the two areas should be up and running at some point next year.
