A Cook County judge on Monday denied an effort by the city’s largest police union to extend a pause on pending disciplinary cases before the Chicago Police Board.
The ruling from Judge Michael T. Mullen came after an hour of arguments from attorneys for the city and Fraternal Order of Police. Disciplinary cases before the police board — 21 in all — were paused late last month after the City Council again voted to reject a provision of the tentative police union contract concerning the most serious police misconduct allegations.
Attorneys for the city, meanwhile, told Mullen that no police board evidentiary hearings will be held until at least March 25 — five days after Mullen is expected to rule on whether or not the arbitration award issued to the FOP will be enforced.
The freeze on police board cases came in late January after the City Council once again voted down a provision of the proposed FOP contract that would allow the most serious CPD misconduct cases to be heard and decided behind closed doors by a third party. That potential change — part of an arbitration award issued to the FOP during contract negotiations last summer — would upend more than 60 years of precedent in the city’s police discipline apparatus.
Edwin Benn, the arbitrator who oversaw the negotiations between the city and the union, said that CPD officers have the right to arbitrate discipline cases because they are public sector employees represented by a collective bargaining unit.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.