Kevin Connor 3 May 2017

Ethical Analysis

The Chicago Police Department has found themselves under much public scrutiny for the

Homan Square undercover site. In three related articles released by The Guardian, information

from public records and first-hand accounts have uncovered unethical police practices that are

said to take place at a Chicago Police warehouse in the Homan Square neighborhood. Data

found has confirmed that over 7,000 people were detained at an off the record interrogation

site from August 2004 to June 2015. Nearly 6,000 of those being black. Ackermans articles

state that police records show that only 68 of the near 7,000 detained at Homan Square were

granted access to an attorney or given public notice of their whereabouts. Chicago Police claim

this site as narcotic outpost where police follow all of the rules as said by Mayor Rahm

Emmanuel. First-hand accounts from those detained and lawyers of clients held at Homan

Square vary greatly from the statements made by the Chicago Police and Mayor Rahm

Emmanuel. An important thing to note in this story is the lack of access of attorneys made

available to the detainees. Miranda rights state that those arrested have a right to an attorney.

The fact that only 0.94% of the detainees at Homan Square over eleven years were granted

access to an attorney displays unethical practices carried out by the Chicago police. Aside from

suspects being denied attorneys, various people held at Homan Square have issued statements

about the poor conditions of the warehouse. Detainees claim that were held there for hours to

days without food or water as well as being violently assaulted during interrogation.

A statement from the FBI bulletin touched on the subject of ethics within law

enforcement:

Law enforcement organizations nationwide adhere to strict hiring standards mandated

by certification commissions that seek out individuals with the highest moral values.
Kevin Connor 3 May 2017

Cadets receive ethics training in academies to reinforce the importance of high ethical

behavior and its relationship to the profession. However, because police officers are

human beings chosen from the public, leaders cannot expect total absence of corruption

and unethical behavior. The question is whether organizations are doing enough to

reinforce ethics training and reduce misconduct (Fortenbery 1).

The Chicago Police Department has issued minimal amounts of statements and information

regarding the Homan Square warehouse. Unethical behavior and corruption are detrimental to

building community trust (Fortenbery 4)

According to Kytes An Ethical Life, in order to ethically analyze a problem or situation,

there are four ways of ethical thinking to go about handling a case or issue. The first being

truth, which means to think in terms of the facts of the situation. In this case we can see that the

facts or truth presented display the unethical and unlawful practices carried out by officers at

Homan Square. The next form of ethical thinking is that of consequences, meaning thinking in

terms of the results of an action. In this case it is apparent that there will be multiple parties

affected by the wrongdoings of the police. Those detained as well as their family members will

likely have emotional damage from the practices carried out at Homan Square. Following

consequences is the ethical way of thinking known as fairness. Fairness is defined as thinking in

terms of equality and consistency. It is clear to see that the disproportionate amount of blacks

arrested at Homan Square goes hand in hand with the ongoing nature of inequality in our nation.

The fourth and final way of ethical thinking is character. Character means to think in terms of

peoples motivations, character traits, or both. Character in this case is similar to the theme of

inequality shown in the fairness way of thinking. In Ackermans article, a former officer

stationed at Homan Square stated that he would be questioned by his coworkers for arresting a
Kevin Connor 3 May 2017

white person. This displays the culturally racist character traits in many of the officers working

out of Homan Square. Cultural racism is a set of cultural presumptions that function to

systematically advantage and disadvantage racial groups (Kohlhaas 9). One could make a strong

case for all four ways of ethically thinking in regards to the practices that take place at the

Homan Square police warehouse. Of the four, I believe fairness to be the most relevant in this

situation. In this way of thinking, we can ask ourselves a number of questions to better

understand the problem: How would you feel if you were detained in poor and inhumane

conditions for a minor offense? Is it fair or just that detainees are denied the right to an attorney?

Are all racial demographics being treated this way or is it specifically black?

In relation to Christian ethics, Catholic Morality and the four sources of Christian Ethics

hold a place in the analysis of this case. The Catholic Morality element of Eudaimonian

Morality plays an important role in the well-being of those held at the warehouse. Eudaimonian

reality states that a person has the freedom to seek true happiness, contentment, and joy. There is

no doubt that there are dangerous criminals held at Homan Square, but minor offenders held

under poor conditions are denied the right of Eudaimonian reality due to the unethical practices

performed by law enforcement at the site. Of the four sources of Christian Ethics, scripture

pertains most to the unethical practices carried out at Homan Square. The majority of the bible

preaches against violence. There are countless amounts of scripture verses in The Bible that

speak out against violence while promoting peace. 1 Thessalonians 5:15 states the following,

Make sure that nobody pays back wrong for wrong, but always strive to do what is good for

each other and for everyone else. The data and interviews from the articles clearly contradict

with the scriptures teachings of peace and non-violence.

Kevin Connor 3 May 2017

The concepts and sources of ethical thinking presented throughout this paper speak out

against the unethical actions performed by the Chicago Police at Homan Square. The data and

information uncovered by The Guardian articles is a step in the right direction, but much more

progressive action is needed in order to reprimand the CPD for their wrongdoings. Civil rights

activists and the general public have voiced their disapproval with the CPDs practices at Homan

Square, but nothing will change unless internal changes within the Chicago police department

are made to ensure that officers with ethical practices are put in positions of higher authority.

Fairness needs to be instilled within law enforcement to provide equality to all members of

society.
Kevin Connor 3 May 2017

Works Cited

Ackerman, Spencer. "Homan Square revealed: how Chicago police 'disappeared' 7,000 people."

The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 19 Oct. 2015.

Ackerman, Spencer. "'I Was Struck with Multiple Blows': Inside the Secret Violence of Homan

Square." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 11 Apr. 2016.

Ackerman, Spencer, and Zach Stafford. "Chicago police detained thousands of black Americans

at interrogation facility." The Guardian. Guardian News and Media, 05 Aug. 2015.

Fortenbery, Jay. "Developing Ethical Law Enforcement Leaders: A Plan of Action." FBI Law

Enforcement Bulletin, May 2015

Kohlhaas, Jake. "Review Slides." 4 November 2015, Microsoft PowerPoint file

Kyte, Richard. An Ethical Life. Winona: Anselm Academic, 2012.

The Bible. New International Version, 1973.