Ethical Society Of Police: We Condemn Federal Law Enforcement Raid On Chicago Apartment Complex

Photos: YouTube Screenshots

The following is the official statement of The Ethical Society of Police (ESOP) regarding the federal raid on a Chicago apartment complex. ESOP is calling for all law enforcement agencies, officers, associations, and leaders – municipal, state, and federal – to publicly denounce these unconstitutional tactics and includes specific demands for an investigation and accountability. 

Official Statement from the Ethical Society of Police Regarding the Federal Raid on a Chicago Apartment Complex

The Ethical Society of Police condemns in the strongest terms the recent federal law enforcement raid on a South Shore apartment complex in Chicago.

We are particularly horrified by the reports that children, awakened in terror, witnessed these paramilitary tactics and, in many cases, were themselves restrained – zip-tied, separated from parents, terrified. To use such tactics in a residential building in the middle of the night is to inflict trauma not just on targets but on entire families and communities. The psychological harm of watching masked agents storm your home, of having one’s door destroyed, of hearing flash bangs in a hallway, can last a lifetime. These children did nothing wrong. They were victims of a spectacle of state violence.

What took place in Chicago was a betrayal of constitutional norms and a direct assault on the legitimacy of policing. The Ethical Society of Police stands with victims, children, families, and communities demanding justice and accountability.

If law enforcement cannot be trusted to respect the rights of the vulnerable and the innocent, then we forfeit the moral authority to expect compliance or cooperation from any community. We must guard against this turning point: either policing remains tethered to the rule of law, or it descends into arbitrary force. We choose the former.

A Call to All Law Enforcement: Speak Out — Protect Constitutional Policing

We call upon all law enforcement agencies, officers, associations, and leaders – municipal, state, and federal – to publicly denounce these unconstitutional tactics.

Silence in the face of this abuse is complicity. We must, in fact cross the “thin blue line” when adherence to constitutional values is at stake. We cannot afford to let a line drawn between “us” and “them” become a shield behind which law enforcement hides when violating rights.

Procedural justice is not optional – it is foundational. When a federal agency behaves as though it is above the law, every officer who stands for lawful, accountable, community-centered policing is undermined. The credibility of all law enforcement in communities of color, immigrant communities, and among vulnerable populations depends on us rejecting these actions, no matter under what banner they are done.

To those who say “we must get tough” on crime or immigration: yes – law enforcement must be effective, resolute, and just. But it must also be legal, transparent, and constrained by the Constitution. Anything less is state violence, not policing.

We Demand:

• An immediate independent federal and local investigation into the conduct, use of force, chain of command, and any violations of civil rights in the Chicago raid.
• Release of all warrants or legal authorizations claimed to justify the operation – redacted only where legally required – so that the public may judge whether the operation had lawful basis.
• Accountability for any agents or supervisors found to have overstepped legal bounds – up to removal, prosecution, or disciplinary action.
• A public recommitment by federal law enforcement (ICE, CBP, Border Patrol, DHS) that no future operation will use militarized tactics in residential neighborhoods unless it strictly complies with constitutional requirements, minimal force doctrine, and full transparency.
• That local, state, and municipal departments refuse to cooperate in future operations that fail to meet constitutional standards, and that police associations issue formal statements condemning such violations.

ABOUT THE ETHICAL SOCIETY OF POLICE (ESOP) 
The Ethical Society of Police (ESOP) was founded in 1972 by African-American officers to address race-based discrimination in the community and with the St. Louis Metropolitan Police Department. In 2018, the ESOP expanded to include membership for civilian and commissioned employees of law enforcement agencies within St. Louis County.

The Ethical Society of Police is an association of police officers and civilians whose mission is to bridge communications between historically marginalized communities and law enforcement. The ESOP works to improve: community/police relations, develop policies and programs to reduce crime, elevate the status of minority civilians and police officers, encourage greater minority employment by law enforcement agencies, and increase professionalism in law enforcement. Membership is open to all races, nationalities, religions, political affiliations, sexual orientations and gender identities. For more information about the Ethical Society of Police, visit www.esopstl.org.

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