Oak Park village staff, the Citizens Police Oversight Committee, Pivot Consulting Group and the Oak Park Police Department will work together to draft and review new policy within 60 days restricting the use of pretextual traffic stops after a unanimous vote by the village board on July 21.
Trustee Derek Eder, seconded by Trustee Chibuike Enyia, motioned to consider this proposal following the death of Christian Wallace in May. Wallace was shot and killed by Oak Park police during a struggle after he was pulled over for failing to signal a lane change. Video footage of the incident was released in June and a state police investigation is still on-going.
“The leading cause of car crashes and roadway deaths are speeding and drunk driving, not broken taillights or expired registration stickers,” said Eder. “When police spend time pulling over people for minor violations, they have less time to focus on reckless driving and other behaviors that actually put lives at risk.”…