Waukegan police to review all procedures
Recommended juvenile investigation changes have been put in place
After receiving a study from an independent consultant offering suggestions on how to improve juvenile interrogation techniques and implementing the proposals, Waukegan police Chief Keith Zupec is going further with an overall review of all the department’s policies and procedures.
Before the city released the independent study into juvenile interrogations Tuesday, the City Council approved an agreement Aug. 1 with Lexipol engaging the company to review police policies and procedures to keep them consistent with Illinois law.
“They will review all of our procedures,” Zupec said. “This way, when laws change we won’t miss anything. When a law changes, so will we. It is an ongoing program. It’s how a lot of departments keep up with it.”
Delivered to the department June 17, but released Thursday, was a study by international consulting firm Jensen Hughes dealing specifically with policies and procedures regarding juvenile interrogations.
Mayor Ann Taylor said reviews of procedures for all the city’s departments are ongoing. The Jensen Hughes study is an example of how things can change when the need arises.
“It’s important we look at how we do things, and how they can be changed,” Taylor said. “We should look at our procedures as much as possible.”
The juvenile procedure study compared local methods to both Illinois law and the best practices of the United States Department of Justice’s Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Program.
Both the Jensen Hughes study and the Lexipol review are being undertaken in part because of the Feb. 16 false arrest of Waukegan High School sophomore Martel Williams on Feb. 16 for the attempted murder of a store clerk Feb. 4 in what turned out to be a case of mistaken identity.
Williams was held in juvenile detention for two days before he was released Feb. 18 after police learned he was playing basketball at Adlai E. Stevenson High School in Lincolnshire at the time of the crime.
Though the report of the general review of police juvenile procedures was released Tuesday, the city said in a statement the study of the specific case which motivated the study contains specific details about the arrest, interrogation and incarceration of Williams.
“As a result, this (second) report must be kept confidential pursuant to the requirements of the Illinois Juvenile Court Act unless the subject of the report provides consent of its release or a juvenile court judge orders its release,” the city said in the statement.
As of Wednesday, the family had not agreed to the release of the second case specific report, according to the city’s statement. Zupec said he acted on the Jensen
Hughes suggestions when he received the report in June.
“We’ve already implemented all of their suggestions,” Zupec said. “Some of this is important for all of our detectives to know in any interrogation room anywhere. It’s good for a 25-year veteran like me or a first-year officer.”
Before receiving the report, Zupec made two changes in March as a result of the Williams arrest. Police can no longer arrest a teen while they are at school, and no interrogation will take place without a parent, guardian or attorney present.
Changes arising from the study include limiting the length of time a juvenile is interrogated, not conducting an interrogation in the middle of the night, reading the full juvenile Miranda rights to the suspect without pausing, police officers not act as an advocate for the juvenile and interviews be videotaped.
“We’ve done all of this, including the full Miranda,” the police chief said. “We always do interviews with video, and an attorney is present when it is required by law. Officers should be mindful of the time, but I won’t set a specific time limit.”
When a juvenile is suspected of committing a crime, Zupec said he intends to get the school resource officer from the youth’s school involved.