Author: Andrew M. Stroth, Managing Partner, Action Injury Law Group. Civil rights attorney, Northwestern Pritzker School of Law graduate and former adjunct professor, current Northwestern Law Board member, and lead advocate for victims of police misconduct throughout Chicago and Cook County.
If someone you love was just hurt by Chicago police, it can be a traumatizing experience, and you should not have to figure out what comes next alone. Here is where you start: a claim is built on four things: video, medical records, witness statements, and speed. The department will not hand any of it over willingly, and the longer you wait, the more of it disappears.
The official police report is never the whole story. In excessive force and wrongful arrest cases, that report is written by the department being accused, and it typically minimizes what officers did while playing up what you did. Evaluating your claim means building an independent record the department cannot spin.
Start with video. Body-worn camera footage, dashboard video, and bystander cell phone recordings are the strongest evidence in a misconduct case, because they show what happened without a department filter. Chicago's civilian oversight agency for police investigates excessive force complaints against Chicago police, but that process runs on its own timeline. Your case does not have to wait on it.
If you went to an emergency room or clinic after an arrest, those records matter. They put a timestamp on your injuries and connect them directly to what officers did. A municipal legal department can argue with your memory of events. It is far harder to argue with a discharge summary and an X-ray taken the same night.
Business security cameras, residential doorbell cameras, and CTA transit cameras often capture the moments before and after an incident. Most of that footage is overwritten within days unless someone requests it in writing. Waiting even a week can mean the difference between having proof and having nothing.
This is exactly why Action Injury Law Group built the Action Response Team®. Day or night, we mobilize to the scene to secure video, forensics, and eyewitness statements before they vanish. When 16-year-old Dnigma Howard was thrown down the stairs by Chicago police at Marshall High School, her father called Action, and that same urgency applies to every case we take. When Bernard Kersh was body-slammed by a Chicago officer, his mother called Action for the same reason: evidence does not wait, and neither do we.
Witness statements round out the record. Neighbors, passengers, and bystanders who saw the incident help establish a consistent sequence of events. When several independent accounts match, a department's attempt to blame the victim starts to fall apart.
A general injury firm that handles the occasional misconduct case is not built for this fight. Challenging a municipal defendant means knowing how Cook County courts actually handle these claims, how to compel a department to produce evidence it would rather bury, and how to cross-examine the officers involved. Illinois residents also have a state-level option: the state's Civil Rights Bureau investigates patterns of unlawful conduct by police departments, though that office represents the state, not you individually. Your case needs a firm built specifically for civil rights litigation, not a side practice.
Cost should never be the reason you stay silent after police misconduct. Action Injury Law Group offers free case evaluations and works on contingency. That means no fee unless we win a recovery on your case.
If you or a family member has experienced police misconduct, excessive force, or a civil rights violation in Chicago, you do not have to face it alone.
Whether you are searching for a civil rights lawyer near me or ready to talk today, contact Action Injury Law Group at 844-878-4LAW to speak directly with an advocate ready to fight for your family.
Video (body camera, dashboard, or bystander footage), medical records from the same day, and witness statements. Together they build an independent record the department cannot easily dismiss.
Immediately. Surveillance and doorbell footage are often overwritten within days. The sooner evidence is secured, the stronger your claim.
No. Action Injury Law Group provides free case evaluations and works on contingency. You pay nothing unless we win.
That is common, not disqualifying. Independent video, medical records, and witness accounts are what carry weight, not the department's version of events.
This blog is for informational purposes only and is not legal advice. No attorney-client relationship is created by reading this content. Please consult a qualified attorney regarding your specific legal needs.
