Can I Get a Copy of My Receipt?

polioce reportLast year, Illinois passed a law that went into effect January 1st requiring all police officers to fill out detailed reports called investigatory stop reports, or ISRs, for normal investigatory stops.  The officer must fill out the report any time they stop a person for a “stop-and-frisk” or “terry stop” situation, which references the court case Terry v Ohio.  They are a routine detention of a person allowing police officers to question them if they have reasonable suspicion that a crime has been or will be committed.  They allow officers to gather information and in many cases prevent a crime from occurring. Last year, these stop- and- frisks led to thousands of illegal gun arrests and confiscations.  The law was part of a deal that was reached between Chicago and the Illinois American Civil Liberties Union.

Upon performing a terry stop, the officer must then fill out the ISR.  The officer must detail whether or not they frisked or arrested the person as well as other detailed information regarding why the officer detained the person. “Stop receipts” are to then be issued to the person that was frisked by police in order to keep in their records, should they need to recall the information later. The stop receipts have the officer’s name and badge number as well as the reason why the officer stopped them.

As part of the agreement with the ACLU, the reports are reviewed by a retired federal court judge.  The judge determines whether or not the Chicago Police Department is in compliance with the fourth amendment of the Constitution and can make changes to the stop-and-frisk programs and reporting if he sees necessary.  On Wednesday, Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced that he will be looking into the length and depth of the reports after getting multiple complaints from Chicago officers expressing that the form is much too lengthy and wastes time and resources. The investigatory stop reports replaced the longstanding contact card system which was an index card length checklist that officers could easily fill out in minutes. The new ISRs, which are extremely time consuming, are two pages in length and add to the mountain of paperwork officers are already required to fill out. The picture below, which was posted on DNAinfo, shows the length and depth of the new reports. Chicago police officers say that in comparison to other cities in Illinois, Chicago’s stop reports are much longer and much more in depth. Mayor Emanuel has been speaking with different police officers in the months since the new reports were integrated and ordered for them to be reviewed.

STOP REPORTstop report 2

These new reports are causing officers to perform these stops much less frequently. But the lengthy paperwork isn’t the only reason for the decline.  According to the Chicago Sun Times, the amount of terry stops that officers perform is down 79% from last year although crime has actually increased.  In the first 11 days of the year in 2015, officers performed 16,698 stops where this year officers only performed 3,916. The length of the reports as well as the consequences for performing an illegal stop is what deters the officers from performing terry stops.  The time consuming nature of the reports means that officers spend less time on the streets preventing crimes and more time filling out reports.  The stops, which are a basic function of daily police officer duties, have become very complex and tedious after the changes were made this year.  After the review, it will be decided if the new investigative stop reports will be changed or remain the same.

Here at LauraLaw, we will stay updated on this law and any changes. If you are a police officer facing administrative action, or someone who needs to know your rights regarding stop-and-frisk, don’t hesitate to contact us and one of our skilled attorneys will be happy to assist you.


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