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Search Warrant Reform Timeline

Efforts to Revise the Chicago Police Department’s (CPD) Policy and Practices on Search Warrants

January 2020:

  • CPD revised the search warrant policy (S04-19, “Search Warrants) based on internal review to include revisions to requiring two uniformed entry team members, approval for patrol search warrants outside the district, activating body-worn cameras (BWC), reporting damages and warrants served at a wrong address.
  • CPD launches a revised in-person search warrant training “Chicago Police Department and Search Warrants in the 21st Century” for members identified as routinely conducting search warrant investigations. (Approximately 300 members trained before COVID restrictions were imposed.)

December 2020:

  • Superintendent Brown directs the review and revision of CPD’s January 2020 search warrant policy.

December 2020 – May 2021:

  • The Chicago City Council Public Safety Committee held hearings on CPD search warrants.
  • Draft search warrant policy, reflective of community feedback and the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) “Urgent Recommendations on the Chicago Police Department’s Search Warrant Policies,” announced by Mayor and Superintendent and posted for public comment on 3 March 2021.
  • Superintendent held 2 Community Focus Groups focused on CPD’s search warrant policy. (12 March 2021 and 17 March 2021).
  • CPD continued to collaborate with IMT/OAG, Department of Law, subject matter experts, other City agencies, and community members on the development of a revised draft policy.

May 2021:

  • Revised S04-19 “Search Warrants” published and implemented on 28 May 2021, to address new investigation, development, and approval processes, wrong raid investigations, warrant service safeguards, and after-action reviews.
  • Enrolled all sworn CPD sworn members into the Search Warrant Overview 2021 – Program, an eLearning to familiarize members to the new policy revisions.

October 2021:

Revised S04-19 “Search Warrants” implemented on 27 October 2021 to address requests for CPD to assist in outside agency warrants within the City.

March 2022:

The Stipulation Regarding Search Warrants was entered in Federal Court to add CPD’s search warrant policy to the Impartial Policing provisions of the Consent Decree.

June 2022:

CPD posted the October 2021 Version of S04-19 “Search Warrants” for public comment from 8 June until 23 June 2022.

November 2022 – December 2022:

  • CPD again posted the 26 October 2021 Version of S04-19 “Search Warrants” for public comment until 31 December 2022.
  • CPD opened a Public Input Forum to gather anonymous input by asking various questions to gather feedback on specific components of the search warrant policy.
  • CPD conducted two CPD Virtual Community Conversations​ (1) Tuesday, November 15, 2022 and (2) Thursday, December 8, 2022.
  • CPD offered Deliberative Dialogues for organizations and groups to meet individually with members of CPD on the search warrant policy.
  • CPD continued to collaborate with IMT/OAG, Department of Law, subject matter experts, other City agencies, and community members on the development of a revised draft policy

December 2022:

Revised S04-19 “Search Warrants” published on 16 December 2022 to address new accountability and review processes of the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office.

January 2023 – July 2023:

  • After completing the community engagement process, CPD posted the following for public comment, revised to be reflective of the previous 2022 community engagement efforts, until 10 July 2023.
    • “CPD Search Warrants – 2023 Update” Public Posting Supplement – a summary of CPD’s recent Search Warrant Activity
    • S04-19 Search Warrants (DRAFT) – outlines the overall search warrant policies with an emphasis on de-escalation, minimizing trauma, and respectful and equitable treatment.
    • S04-19-01 Search Warrant Development, Review, and Approval (DRAFT) – outlines the responsibilities and processes for the search warrant development investigation, review, and approval.
    • S04-19-02 Search Warrant Service (DRAFT) – outlines the requirements for the search warrant pre-planning session and the service of search warrants.
    • S04-19-03 Search Warrant Post-Service Documentation and Review (DRAFT) – outlines the requirements for the search warrant post-service documentation and administrative review of search warrants.
    • New proposed Search Warrant forms – for the Development, Risk Assessment, Pre-Service, and Post-Service documentation.
  • CPD opened a Public Input Forum to gather anonymous input by asking various questions to gather feedback on specific components of the search warrant policy.
  • CPD offered Deliberative Dialogues for organizations and groups to meet individually with members of CPD on the search warrant policy.
  • Department Notice D22-07, “Search Warrant Community Resources and Referrals Pilot Program” started on January 9th, 2023 and provides support services after the service of a search warrant that include:
    • securing and repairing any damage to the point of entry caused by CPD’s service of the search warrant.
    • offering trauma-informed counseling services to persons present at the time of the search warrant.
  • CPD’s Office of Community Policing, Crime Victim Services Section, works in conjunction with the City of Chicago Department of Buildings and Community Safety Coordination Center (CSCC) on providing these support services.

August 2023:

  • After completing the community engagement process, CPD posted an August 2023 Search Warrant Update public posting supplement, providing an overview of CPD’s continuing work to address ideas and areas of concern brought forth by community members since January 2023.

August 2023 – January 2024:

  • CPD continued to collaborate with IMT/OAG, Department of Law, subject matter experts, other City agencies, and community members on the development of a revised draft policy.
  • CPD collaborated with the Consent Decree Coalition on over 20 topics identified by the Coalition for CPD to consider in revising the Search Warrant policy.  The City, the CPD, and the Coalition were able to reach agreement on approximately 13 issues, including compromises related to harm mitigation, protection of children and other vulnerable people, and repairing harms resulting from execution of searches.  The City, the OAG, and the Coalition remained at impasse on several issues and sought Court resolution.

May 2024:

Judge Pallmeyer issued the “Resolution of Search Warrant Issues at Impasse Between the City Of Chicago, the Office of the Illinois Attorney General, and the Coalition” directing that CPD’s final policies, training, and practices on search warrants are consistent with the resolutions to the 7 issues at impasse, including risk assessments, minor offenses, firearm pointing, serving “no-knock” warrants, knock and announce provisions, and body-worn cameras.

June 2024 – January 2025:

CPD continued to collaborate with IMT and OAG, Department of Law, subject matter experts, other City agencies, and community members on the development of a revised draft policy, submitting updated draft directives based on the Court’s resolution and being reflective of community feedback and national best practices.

February 2025 – May 2025:

  • After completing the policy review and comment process as prescribed by paragraph 627 of the consent decree, CPD posted the following updated documents for public comment until 14 March 2025:
    • CPD Search Warrants – 2025 Update” Public Posting Supplement – a summary of CPD’s recent Search Warrant Activity.
    • S04-19 Search Warrants – outlines the overall search warrant policies with an emphasis on de-escalation, minimizing trauma, and respectful and equitable treatment.
    • S04-19-01 Search Warrant Development, Review, and Approval – outlines the responsibilities and processes for the search warrant development investigation, review, and approval.
    • S04-19-02 Search Warrant Service – outlines the requirements for the search warrant pre-planning session and the service of search warrants.
    • S04-19-03 Search Warrant Post-Service Documentation and Review – outlines the requirements for the search warrant post-service documentation and administrative review of search warrants.

March 2025 – Present:

  • CPD continues to review the community feedback to conclude the community engagement process, including with the Coalition to finalize policy development
  • Final policies will be included in “Pre-Implementation” on CPD’s Department Directives System to announce and subsequently implement these new procedures, upon the completion of training for CPD members and the final development and implementation of a new electronic reporting application.