Chicago police officers will now be allowed to file certain felony gun possession charges directly without waiting for a prosecutor to approve the case, the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office announced Friday. The move marks the citywide expansion of a program that began in CPD’s Englewood(7th) District, an initiative CWBChicago first reported on earlier this year.
Under the new Expedited Felony Review standard, officers who complete specialized training can directly charge select nonviolent felony gun offenses that do not involve a shooting or a victim. Those charges include unlawful possession of a weapon, unlawful possession of a weapon by a felon, and aggravated unlawful possession of a weapon, according to an announcement by the state’s attorney’s office.
Cook County State’s Attorney Eileen O’Neill Burke said the change is designed to eliminate one of the biggest bottlenecks in the county’s felony review system, where lower-level, “victimless” gun cases often sit behind violent-crime investigations that require immediate attention. Burke said the streamlined system will return officers to patrol faster and allow prosecutors to devote more time to cases involving victims and complex evidence…