The Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability (CCPSA), the civilian panel responsible for overseeing the Chicago Police Department, is wrapping up a public comment period as it weighs major restrictions on the types of traffic stops CPD officers are allowed to make.
The group is taking public input through Monday but has already outlined a list of restrictions most of its members support. Among them: barring traffic stops for plates expired less than a year, improperly displayed or missing front license plates, improper rear license plate lighting, having a single non-functioning head-, tail-, or brake lights during daylight hours, and driving with a loud sound system.
A minority of CCPSA commissioners also support banning stops for failure to wear seat belts or failure to signal turns or lane changes. Some community members are pushing to go even further — calling for a ban on stops for tinted windows, among other minor violations.
Why? Because they believe traffic stops are disproportionately used against Black and Brown drivers, often as a pretext to look for guns or other contraband.
“More than 44% of all drivers stopped by police officers in 2024 were Black, and nearly 35% of drivers pulled over by Chicago police officers were Latino. By comparison, just 14.8% of drivers stopped by Chicago police were White,” WTTW reported, citing a paper published by a coalition of groups seeking to change traffic stop policies.
That conclusion assumes that “fair” traffic enforcement would result in stops that mirror the city’s racial makeup — an assumption that some observers say is flawed. White residents may be less likely to drive or even own vehicles because they tend to live in walkable, transit-rich neighborhoods. Meanwhile, Black and Latino residents may spend more time behind the wheel and could be statistically more likely to work in driving-intensive roles, such as delivery or ridesharing. Financially well-off residents may also be far more likely to spend disposable income on frequent rideshares instead of driving.
A proper analysis of driving rates by race would also need to exclude expressway miles, since the CPD does not enforce traffic laws on highways, Illinois State Police troopers do.
“They are using traffic stops to fight crime but there is no evidence that it works,” an ACLU representative told WTTW earlier this year. However, the outlet did not explain how the group determined that the thousands of guns seized during traffic stops in recent years would not have been used in crimes had they remained on the street.
Critics of the proposed restrictions also argue that while pretextual stops may be unpopular, the U.S. Supreme Court found the practice constitutional nearly 30 years ago. Pretextual stops, police say, are a valuable law enforcement tool that has led to the recovery of tens of thousands of illegal firearms in Chicago alone.
Here are several recent Chicago cases in which police made arrests during traffic stops — including machine gun-related charges — that could soon be off-limits under CCPSA’s recommendations:
July 5, 12300 block of South Michigan
Officers assigned to monitor a funeral saw that neither the driver nor the passenger in a passing vehicle was wearing a seat belt. According to a detention petition filed by prosecutors, the passenger, 23-year-old Tyrese Terry, “swiftly [bent] at the waist, dropping his shoulders near the floorboard” as police approached. Terry failed to produce an ID and allegedly gave a fake name. Officers took him into custody for obstruction of identification and recovered a handgun with an extended magazine and a full-auto switch, prosecutors said. Judge Antara Rivera granted a petition to detain him on a charge of machine gun possession.
June 29, Museum Campus
Police stopped a driver for having plates that had expired in November, according to a CPD report. Officers said David Ortega, 18, was seated in the rear passenger seat without a seatbelt and with the butt of a firearm protruding between his leg and the seat. They ordered him not to reach for the weapon and took him into custody. Prosecutors said the gun was equipped with a full-auto switch that allowed it to fire like a machine gun with a single pull of the trigger. Judge Luciano Panici Jr. granted the state’s request to hold Ortega in jail.
June 29, 1400 block of North Long
Officers stopped nine-time convicted felon Carnell Treadwell for failing to signal before a left turn, according to a CPD report. Treadwell, who was on parole for a previous firearm conviction, also was not wearing a seatbelt and had an open 1/8-full bottle of tequila in the cup holder. Police allegedly found a loaded handgun inside a bookbag on the passenger-side floorboard, the report stated. His female passenger denied owning the bag, and Treadwell invoked his right to remain silent. Prosecutors charged him with being a felon in possession of a firearm, and the Illinois Department of Corrections revoked his parole. In addition to two previous gun convictions, Treadwell has been convicted of robbery six times.
July 7, 6500 block of South Whipple
Officers pulled over Carlos Martinez for a broken taillight and seatbelt violations, according to a CPD arrest report. Martinez told officers he did not have a driver’s license or insurance and gave them a false name, but police saw his wallet and license lying in plain view on the back floorboard, the report stated. Officers asked him to exit the vehicle and allegedly recovered a stolen handgun wedged between the driver’s seat and center console. Martinez reportedly told officers he “did not know the gun was there.” Judge Mary Marubio ordered him detained pending trial.
July 6, 4800 block of North Broadway
Police said they stopped Junior Paucar, 23, for driving with an obstructed view. As they approached the car, they allegedly observed him making “furtive movements” toward a loaded handgun on the rear passenger floorboard. According to his CPD arrest report, officers also saw a spent shell casing on the rear floor and “multiple live 9mm rounds in the center console.” After initially denying possession, Paucar admitted to buying the gun in Colorado and firing it there, the report said. Prosecutors noted he had a pending domestic battery case, and Judge James Murphy III ordered him detained.
July 7, 2300 block of South Kenneth
Officers stopped Arthur Hudson for not wearing a seatbelt. During the stop, they allegedly saw an open bottle of “vodquila” on the passenger-side floor, according to a CPD report. Officers then found a loaded .380-caliber handgun in the glovebox, prosecutors said. Although Hudson denied owning the weapon, CPD said the vehicle was registered in his name. Prosecutors noted that Hudson has two previous gun convictions and asked Judge Murphy to order him detained — a request the judge granted, stating Hudson was “a real and present threat” who “is well aware that he is not to carry a firearm.”
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