by Alex DiBranco
Twenty-year-old Tiawanda Moore went to Chicago Police Headquarters to report being fondled by an officer. But Internal Affairs didnt want to take her complaint. After asking for new investigators and being refused, Moore turned on her Blackberry recorder to document this second instance of police misconduct.
When the investigators realized they were being taped, they promptly arrested Moore for eavesdropping, a charge that carries a sentence of up to 15 years.
Meanwhile, as Moore awaits trial in May, no disciplinary action has been taken against the officer who groped her. Not to mention the officers who refused to accept her complaint. Moores lawyer, Robert Johnson, reports that officials “claim the investigation is not completed” — even though its been over half-a-year since Moore attempted to make her complaint. As the “investigation” drags on for no apparent reason, the police officer has not been temporarily suspended, and is free to continue assaulting and harassing other women.
The Chicago Taskforce on Violence against Girls and Young Women has taken up Tiawanda Moores cause and launched a petition on her behalf on Change.org, calling for Cook County States Attorney Anita Alvarez to drop the eavesdropping charges and for the police sexual misconduct investigation to be undertaken in a timely manner.
Moore didnt know that by turning on a recorder she was committing an illegal act, and the idea that attempting to document misconduct by police would put you away for 15 years is ludicrous. On a broader level, a law such as this one is designed to protect law enforcement at the expense of the people theyre supposed to serve, fuels a culture deeply opposed to transparency, and puts victims in jail while giving corrupt officers a free pass.
via Police Sexual Assault Victim Arrested for Recording Officer Misconduct | Change.org News.
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