CPD Disciplinary Process Overview

Chicago Police Department disciplinary process overview

The Office of Inspector General (OIG) has developed a comprehensive set of flowcharts that details all stages of the disciplinary process for members of the Chicago Police Department (CPD), including all avenues of disciplinary review and appeal. 

A Guide to the Disciplinary Process for Chicago Police Department Members describes and depicts the disciplinary process for all CPD members, sworn and civilian, for all types of allegations of misconduct and recommended discipline. This guide draws on resources from CPD, the Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA), the Police Board, OIG, municipal ordinances, and state law. 

Flowcharts: A guide to the disciplinary process for Chicago Police Department members

OIG’s Public Safety section is required by the Municipal Code of Chicago (MCC) to examine Sustained findings of misconduct by CPD members and accompanying disciplinary recommendations, to assess trends and whether discipline is consistently and fairly applied. OIG developed this comprehensive set of flowcharts that detail all stages of the disciplinary process, including all avenues of disciplinary review and appeal, to provide an accessible resource—for the public, City officials, and Department members—and to inform and augment future OIG inquiries. 

OIG continuously reviews agency policies, the MCC, State law, and relevant collective bargaining agreements to support updates to the disciplinary flowcharts as necessary. When policies, laws, or contracts governing the disciplinary process change, OIG strives to update the flowcharts promptly. The last modified date is indicated on the first page of each chart linked below.

Click here to view flowchart.

A single flowchart depicts the possible disciplinary processes in cases that begin with an OIG investigation; click here to view that chart.

Individual disciplinary flowcharts by rank

OIG has also created a set of charts for each rank that depicts all the possibilities for how a case that results in an investigating agency recommending discipline could progress. Charts for disciplinary processes that begin with CPD’s Bureau of Internal Affairs (BIA) and COPA investigations are presented below.

There is a separate chart for each combination of member rank/position and recommended discipline. This is because the review and appeal processes available to a CPD member after an investigating agency recommends discipline vary depending on both the member’s rank or position and the recommended discipline.

Agency Roles in the Police Disciplinary Process

BIA and COPA investigate most allegations of police misconduct. The information presented here pertains to administrative investigations—that is, non-criminal investigations into possible violations of rules, regulations, directives, etc. Usually, the type of alleged misconduct determines which agency will conduct the investigation. If BIA or COPA finds an allegation to be ‘Sustained,’ meaning the allegation is supported by preponderance evidence, the investigating agency will recommend one of the following disciplinary actions: 

• Violation noted (for sworn members) / Oral warning (for civilian members) 
• Reprimand
• Suspension
• Separation (i.e., termination of employment) 

CPD reviews the investigating agency’s recommendation and makes a final decision on the charges and discipline and issues them to the accused CPD member. The accused member may be able to challenge that discipline, depending on their position/rank and the level of discipline issued. After any elective challenges made by the CPD member are exhausted, any discipline that remains in place is final and is served by the CPD member. 

Under certain circumstances, OIG will investigate allegations of police misconduct. OIG receives complaints directly via the OIG website, tipline, fax, mail, CPD member hotline, or other means. COPA and BIA may also refer investigations to OIG, most notably where conflicts of interest are implicated or an incident also involves other City departments.