COPA Oversight
Under its ordinance, CCPSA has several powers of oversight over the Civilian Office of Police Accountability (COPA). Below is a summary of these powers.
Selection of New COPA Chief
Should a vacancy occur, the CCPSA has the authority to select a new Chief Administrator. This selection is subject to the approval of the City Council. The Commission, with City Council approval, can also remove the COPA Chief for cause.
The Commission created a detailed policy on how the selection process for COPA Chief Administrator works. Following is a link to that policy.
Yearly Goals & Evaluations
Each year, the Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability is required by law to establish goals and expectations for the Chief Administrator of COPA. In addition, at the end of the year, the Commission is required to evaluate and assess the Chief Administrator’s performance in meeting these goals and expectations as part of its oversight responsibilities.
The Commissioners work closely with the Chief Administrator and COPA staff to establish these goals. In the past, the Commission has established goals for COPA which included better timeliness in closing investigations, better communications with complainants and greater transparency around COPA’s work.
Following are links to the full goal documents:
2023: https://www.chicago.gov/content/dam/city/depts/ccpsa/GOALS/COPA%202023%20Goals.pdf