Under a new rule, Chicago cops can no longer engage in the kinds of spontaneous foot chases that lead to the recent shooting deaths of a 13-year-old by and a 22-year-old man at the hands of officers.
The Chicago Police Department announced late Tuesday afternoon that it was issuing a set of new rules about foot pursuits, banning officers from chasing people on foot just because they ran away and also prohibiting foot chases in the instance of minor infractions such as jaywalking or traffic violations.
NBC News reports that it is the first time in the history of the department, which also has a sordid history of police abuses and shootings of civilians, that Chicago police will have a permanent, written policy governing when they can or can’t engage in foot chases.
The policy comes after two high-profile killings by Chicago police last year. In March 2021, 13-year-old Adam Toledo was shot and killed by a Chicago officer after the boy and a 21-year-old man were chased by police. The same month, Chicago cops killed 22-year-old Anthony Alvarez after chasing him over an alleged traffic violation. The NBC report noted that under the new policy, Alvarez wouldn’t have been pursued because officers already knew his identity and where he lived, making a pursuit unnecessary.
The officers in both cases were not charged.