CHICAGO — An alderman from the city’s Northwest Side has filed a complaint against the head of the independent agency that oversees the Chicago Police Department for comments she’s made about the fatal police shooting of Dexter Reed, the Chicago Tribune reported Tuesday.
According to the report, Ald. Nicholas Sposato of the 38th Ward sent a letter to the city’s Office of the Inspector General criticizing Andrea Kersten, the chief administrator of the Civilian Office of Police Accountability, for recent local and national interviews she’s given — including with WGN-TV — about the March 21 fatal shooting of the 26-year-old Reed.
The report also says that Sposato’s complaint calls for COPA’s probe into Reed’s death, which remains ongoing, be turned over to state police.
“Chief Administrator Kersten should not be participating in interviews or comment in memos regarding investigations that have yet to commence,” Sposato wrote, according to the report. “Her comments have led to a tainting of public opinion about the case, and of the brave members of the Chicago Police Department.”
Last week, COPA released police body-cam footage showing that officers fired 96 times on Reed after he fired at them first. One officer was shot in the wrist.
Reed had been stopped in Humboldt Park by plainclothes officers riding in unmarked cars. Court records show Reed was out on bond for unlawful use of a weapon when he was stopped.
According to COPA, the officers initiated the traffic stop because Reed wasn’t wearing a seat belt.
Letter to superintendent
WGN News obtained an internal letter from Kersten to CPD Supt. Larry Snelling via a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request revealing that one officer fired at least 50 times. Kersten’s letter raised concerns about the reason for the traffic stop in the first place, questioning how officers could see the seat belt violation given the dark tints on the windows of Reed’s vehicle.
“This evidence raises serious concerns about the validity of the traffic stop that led to the officers’ encounter with (Reed),” Kersten’s letter said, in part.
The Reed shooting, and COPA’s role in the investigation, has renewed ongoing debates about policy versus perception when it comes to officers using deadly force.
Pro-law enforcement officials have escalated their complaints against Kersten, Chicago Fraternal Order of Police President John Catanzara posting a YouTube video with pointed criticism of her after the body-cam footage was released.
Sposato’s complaint letter to the OIG furthers such criticism against Kersten.
According to the Tribune report, while Sposato’s letter does accuse Kersten of speaking “in an accusatory and inappropriate prejudicial tone about facts that have yet to be investigated,” it does not provide specific examples of her public remarks.
The complaint letter does address, however, the internal letter that Kersten sent to Snelling. The Tribune notes that Kersten’s correspondence was made public only because of a FOIA request and asks Sposato what violation Kersten would be committing by sending a private letter to Snelling.
“I don’t know, I’m not the inspector general,” Sposato replied, according to the report.
Sposato also told the Tribune that, even though Kersten’s letter to Snelling was private, “I guess she needs to be more careful about what she’s doing and what she thinks is public and private, because nowadays you’d have to assume everything you say or do will be videoed or recorded.”
Kersten addressed her letter to Snelling in a WGN-TV appearance last week, saying, “The letter that was sent to the superintendent about that is after reviewing all available video evidence and preliminary information that we’d received on scene. We have more questions about that information.”
According to the Tribune report, Sposato says his priority remains on getting the OIG to reprimand Kersten and to tell her to stop speaking on the Reed case.
The report says COPA spokesperson Jennifer Rottner did not immediately respond to a request for comment Tuesday, while OIG spokesperson Deanna Shoss declined to comment.
Michael Johnson
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