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New Chicago Police oversight agency begins operations

Published  September 15, 2017 9:32pm CDT
Chicago
FOX 32 Chicago

CHICAGO (AP) - The new agency that will investigate shootings by Chicago police and allegations of police misconduct has opened its doors.

The Civilian Office of Police Accountability held a ceremony on Friday to officially begin operations.

The agency was created to replace the Independent Police Review Authority to help restore public trust that was shattered by the 2015 release of a video that showed a white officer fatally shooting black teenager Laquan McDonald 16 times.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel decided to replace IPRA with the new agency amid reports that IPRA had almost never found police shootings violated department policy and when it investigated allegations of misconduct rarely sustained those allegations.

The agency was given a larger budget than IPPRA and 40 more employees than IPRA.