Chicago ‘Code Of Silence:’ 2 Police Officers Claim Blacklisting Over Reporting Corruption

Two Chicago police officers filed a federal lawsuit Thursday alleging that high-ranking Chicago Police Department officials blacklisted them after they attempted to blow the whistle on crooked colleagues who were engaged in illegal activities.

Shannon Spalding and Daniel Echeverria allege in the lawsuit [PDF] that they saw police colleagues shaking down drug dealers and framing innocent people when they were sent to the Ida B. Wells public housing complex to work undercover, according to the Chicago Tribune.

When they attempted to report the wrongdoing, they were first told by their supervisors to “disregard” the incident, the Tribune reports. When they took their report to the FBI, they say they were labeled “rats” and were essentially demoted within the force.

Posted: 11/02/2012 10:45 am EDT Updated: 11/02/2012 10:45 am EDT