"The situation is not a sweeping problem with the department," said newly appointed Chicago Police Department Supt. Jody Weis, a career FBI agent and the first outsider to head the department in almost four decades. "The problem is with a few bad apples."
Hoping to restore public confidence, the City Council and Democratic Mayor Richard M. Daley vowed last year to overhaul the Office of Professional Standards.
They made the unit independent of the Police Department, and had its chief report to the mayor's office.
They expanded its jurisdiction -- which encompassed police-involved shootings, off-duty officer fights, and coercion through threats of violence -- to include complaints formerly handled by the department's internal affairs investigators, including use of excessive force and verbal abuse by an officer that involves racial or other bias.
They set a six-month deadline for investigations to be completed, noting that some of the unit's case backlog dated to 2002.
A mother of two who grew up in a suburb of St. Paul, Minn., Rosenzweig had earned a reputation for being thorough and unflappable during her six years as a staff attorney at the Los Angeles County Office of Independent Review, which monitors the Sheriff's Department.
During that time, she published reports that tackled excessive force, officer-involved shootings and the dangers of chasing suspects.
One of her more high-profile cases examined a Mother's Day shooting in 2005, in which sheriff's deputies fired 120 shots at an unarmed driver in a residential neighborhood in Compton.
Her subsequent report criticized the department for numerous problems, including the fact that officers did not have the tools needed to stop the car safely, and that half of the deputies involved hadn't had up-to-date tactical training.
"In L.A., our approach of looking at the conduct of the officers is not just when they pulled the trigger, but everything that preceded it and came after it," Rosenzweig said.
In Chicago, Rosenzweig discovered that the staff of the Independent Police Review Authority was demoralized, and the computer systems and network connections were outdated. About 30% of the investigative jobs in the 85-member unit were unfilled, and there was a two-year backlog of more than 1,200 cases.
Rosenzweig has been working with the city to hire more investigators and to keep up with the backlog, which continues to grow. "We're taking in about 200 cases a month, and right now closing 150 a month or so," she said.
Annie Johnson doesn't want to wait. Her 18-year-old son, Aaron Harrison, was shot by police last summer. Before the internal investigation was complete, the media reported that the department said the shooting was justified.
Rosenzweig's office is reviewing the case.
At a recent Police Board meeting, Johnson begged for information. "No one's telling me anything," said Johnson. "This is my son. I take this personally."
The panel sat silent -- except for Rosenzweig.
"It's still under investigation. There is specific evidence that we're trying to gather," she said in a calm, quiet voice. "It hasn't been forgotten. He hasn't been forgotten. It is something I'm aware of and personally monitoring."
Johnson sighed angrily and sat down.
"I'd like to believe her," Johnson said after the meeting. "I guess I'm afraid to hope anyone, even an outsider, can change things here."
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p.j.huffstutter@latimes.com
