Hassled and threatened by police in Logan Square

I am looking for some resources to file complaints against an officer's treatment of me while biking this morning.  This officer was clearly uninformed about biking rules of the road and made lots of generalizations about bikers in general.  

I do believe it is possible that my bike (a cargo bike with kids in it) is being targeted since this is not the first run in I've had near the police station at California on Palmer.  This particular officer just took things a bit far threatening me with a ticket and telling me that he could kill a biker with his car.  My son was with me at the time and the altercation took 40 minutes. I need to know what my future course of action can be and if there is a way to file a report against this officer. I do have his name, car number, time of incident and details.

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Permalink Reply by Doug Haynes on August 2, 2012 at 4:24am

Anika,

That is terrible but I am pretty sure you have a pretty legitimate complaint and hopefully it gets come traction at the CPD.

I live about a block from the station there for quite some time, before I was an active cyclist, and have found the local police to be highly unpredictable when it comes to cyclists.  I cannot count the times I have had a marked police car pull out in front of me either from out of the lot there or when turning onto California.  I have also had a similar confrontation you yours on multiple occasions.  I feel it may be one of the less cyclist friendly districts in the city.

Permalink Reply by Anika on August 2, 2012 at 5:57am
Yes - piano tuner

I only ask about taking the lane since I've heard it reference many times including by Active Trans. Regardless, my biking position was enough for the officer to pull beside me to honk and yell before proceeding on. If he hadn't done this, the whole incident probably would never had occurred. Right now, I'm just thankful my 5 year old wasn't with me when it did since this would likely have really disturbed her as a new biker.
Permalink Reply by Bike Bloke on August 2, 2012 at 6:25am

This particularly bad cop is the perfect illustration for my contention that all CPD officers should spend a minimum of a semester, but preferably a year, as bicycle cops. And while we're at it, this should include their commutes as civilians by bike, just so they know what it's like (the good as well as the bad) and can empathize with cyclists.

Permalink Reply by Adam "Cezar" Jenkins on August 2, 2012 at 8:16am

The head of bikes at CPD spoke at our latest Folks on Spokes meeting. He's a good guy. Said they've been training a bunch of cops on bikes lately, but they haven't had to budget to buy a new bike in years and years.

Bike Bloke said:

This particularly bad cop is the perfect illustration for my contention that all CPD officers should spend a minimum of a semester, but preferably a year, as bicycle cops. And while we're at it, this should include their commutes as civilians by bike, just so they know what it's like (the good as well as the bad) and can empathize with cyclists.

Permalink Reply by O on August 2, 2012 at 8:40am

http://cyclingsavvy.org/hows-my-driving/

This is an interesting article from the Florida Bicycle Association. They attempt to explain the Florida law [FS316.2065-5] notion of having to "as close as practicable to the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway," (which is similar in wording to the Chicago ordinance).

There are some additional explanations of why you should use or not use various roadway and sidewalk surfaces and under what conditions. Perhaps something like this in a booklet form (or perhaps on a bookmark-style card) would be useful in dealing with the vagaries of interpretation from district-to-district or from county-to-county as is the case in the suburbs.

Kane County has been especially hard on cyclists who do not put down a foot when at a stop sign, before proceeding to cross an intersection. They have been known to hand out tickets.

Anika said:

Yes - piano tuner

I only ask about taking the lane since I've heard it reference many times including by Active Trans. Regardless, my biking position was enough for the officer to pull beside me to honk and yell before proceeding on. If he hadn't done this, the whole incident probably would never had occurred. Right now, I'm just thankful my 5 year old wasn't with me when it did since this would likely have really disturbed her as a new biker.
Permalink Reply by Sarah D. on August 2, 2012 at 9:11am

You'd think the Millennium Park and North Ave. beach bike rental people, who auction off ALL the bikes at the end of the season, could be easily convinced to donate their stock of hybrids to the CPD... or the CPD could buy them. Do you have a name for the head of bikes at CPD guy? Thanks!

Adam "Cezar" Jenkins said:

The head of bikes at CPD spoke at our latest Folks on Spokes meeting. He's a good guy. Said they've been training a bunch of cops on bikes lately, but they haven't had to budget to buy a new bike in years and years.

Bike Bloke said:

This particularly bad cop is the perfect illustration for my contention that all CPD officers should spend a minimum of a semester, but preferably a year, as bicycle cops. And while we're at it, this should include their commutes as civilians by bike, just so they know what it's like (the good as well as the bad) and can empathize with cyclists.

Permalink Reply by David P. on August 2, 2012 at 3:23pm

Sarah,

It's a good thought, but bicycles like those probably wouldn't last more than about 6 months in CPD use.

David

Sarah D. said:

You'd think the Millennium Park and North Ave. beach bike rental people, who auction off ALL the bikes at the end of the season, could be easily convinced to donate their stock of hybrids to the CPD... or the CPD could buy them. Do you have a name for the head of bikes at CPD guy? Thanks!

Adam "Cezar" Jenkins said:

The head of bikes at CPD spoke at our latest Folks on Spokes meeting. He's a good guy. Said they've been training a bunch of cops on bikes lately, but they haven't had to budget to buy a new bike in years and years.

Bike Bloke said:

This particularly bad cop is the perfect illustration for my contention that all CPD officers should spend a minimum of a semester, but preferably a year, as bicycle cops. And while we're at it, this should include their commutes as civilians by bike, just so they know what it's like (the good as well as the bad) and can empathize with cyclists.

Permalink Reply by O on August 2, 2012 at 5:50pm

In the comments section of the page cited below, I found this:

CM Hickson - January 26, 2012 at 10:45 pm
Great info.
How about making these great responses to the most common questions that we so often hear into a brochure? If I had access to a pre-printed brochure or even a downloadable PDF or other file that I could print myself, I would carry one with me all the time to hand out as appropriate.
What do you think??


O said:

http://cyclingsavvy.org/hows-my-driving/

This is an interesting article from the Florida Bicycle Association. They attempt to explain the Florida law [FS316.2065-5] notion of having to "as close as practicable to the right-hand curb or edge of the roadway," (which is similar in wording to the Chicago ordinance).

There are some additional explanations of why you should use or not use various roadway and sidewalk surfaces and under what conditions. Perhaps something like this in a booklet form (or perhaps on a bookmark-style card) would be useful in dealing with the vagaries of interpretation from district-to-district or from county-to-county as is the case in the suburbs.

Kane County has been especially hard on cyclists who do not put down a foot when at a stop sign, before proceeding to cross an intersection. They have been known to hand out tickets.

Anika said:

Yes - piano tuner

I only ask about taking the lane since I've heard it reference many times including by Active Trans. Regardless, my biking position was enough for the officer to pull beside me to honk and yell before proceeding on. If he hadn't done this, the whole incident probably would never had occurred. Right now, I'm just thankful my 5 year old wasn't with me when it did since this would likely have really disturbed her as a new biker.
Permalink Reply by Justyna on August 3, 2012 at 12:35am

Anika,

I recently witnessed, but was not a party to, an altercations between a cyclist and an un-uniformed police officer, who drove an unmarked car erratically and in a way that endangered several cyclists, as well as other drivers on the road. I happen to be an Active Trans board member, so contacted Rebecca Resman at Active Trans, and she got back to me with a number for the Independent Police Review Board. The number I called was 312.746.3594. They took a lengthy report over the phone, and gave me an appointment to go in a leave a recorded statement, which I did. In my case, I could not be sure which district the police officer belonged to, as he was in an unmarked, or perhaps even a private, vehicle, and I only saw his badge from the distance. Because you were personally involved, and because the car was marked and clearly belonged to the particular district, there may be a different procedure. Please call Rebecca at Active Trans for advice on how to proceed. Good luck.

Permalink Reply by Anne Alt on August 3, 2012 at 12:48am

FYI - for a marked police car, the beat tag on the roof (black and white number card on top of the light bar) and time of day are what you need to identify that vehicle and the officer(s) in it.

Justyna said:

Anika,

I recently witnessed, but was not a party to, an altercations between a cyclist and an un-uniformed police officer, who drove an unmarked car erratically and in a way that endangered several cyclists, as well as other drivers on the road. I happen to be an Active Trans board member, so contacted Rebecca Resman at Active Trans, and she got back to me with a number for the Independent Police Review Board. The number I called was 312.746.3594. They took a lengthy report over the phone, and gave me an appointment to go in a leave a recorded statement, which I did. In my case, I could not be sure which district the police officer belonged to, as he was in an unmarked, or perhaps even a private, vehicle, and I only saw his badge from the distance. Because you were personally involved, and because the car was marked and clearly belonged to the particular district, there may be a different procedure. Please call Rebecca at Active Trans for advice on how to proceed. Good luck.

Permalink Reply by Anika on August 3, 2012 at 5:04am
Thanks for the advice.

When the incident happened, I was able to record the name of the officer, the beat tag and time of the incident.

Rebecca Resman was one of the first people I talked with and she was very helpful. I have since filed a report with the Independent Police Review Board, left messages with the community liaison sergeant at the 14th district, and made contact with other biking authorities. So far, I am in a holding pattern waiting for responses but will update as things progress.
Permalink Reply by Suzi on August 3, 2012 at 5:13am

I would absolutely call the precinct in your neighborhood. It is imperative they know about this in case there are other complaints agains this officer. There used to be a handy bike pamphlet published by the mayor's office. I would offer to drop some off at the station and/or offer to host a "safe riding" portion at the next CAPS meeting. Just be very proactive and don't let this go, please.

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