20% of charges filed in connection with Democratic convention have already been dropped

CHICAGO — Five weeks after the Democratic National Convention concluded in Chicago, court records show that charges have already been dropped against 20% of the people arrested in connection with the event.

City officials announced last month that 72 arrests were made in connection with the four-day convention, which wrapped up with the August 22 acceptance speech of Vice President Kamala Harris. CWBChicago staffers found nine additional cases during a review of all CPD arrest reports generated in the convention zones during the four-day event.

Of those 81 cases, 18 have already been dropped or thrown out. Nobody has pleaded guilty or been found guilty of any DNC-related charge.

Cook County prosecutors dropped seven misdemeanor cases last week: five trespassing cases, one resisting case, and one involving trespassing and assault, according to records.

The remaining 11 dismissed cases were all ordinance violations for disorderly conduct. Court entries suggest the city’s attorneys dropped the charges, but that may not accurately reflect what happened.

A source familiar with many of the cases said judges have been rejecting the city’s requests for continuances when Chicago cops responsible for filing a case are not available on the first court date. Judge Peter Gonzalez handled all of the dismissed cases.

According to a Chicago Law Department spokesperson, the city is “actively prosecuting” cases, and its attorneys are appearing in court.

However, records show four of the misdemeanor trespassing cases dropped by the county on Thursday also included trespassing ordinance violations, which were dismissed due to “non-appearance default.”

Among the charges dropped last Thursday were the trespassing allegations filed against Charles Steinbrugge, a 70-year-old Lakeview physician who said he unwittingly rode his bike into a restricted area near the United Center.

Steinbrugge told the Sun-Times last month that a Department of Homeland Security agent stopped him, put him in handcuffs, and turned him over to CPD.

“He was being really hardcore, trying to be a tough guy,” Steinbrugge told the paper. “Chicago cops didn’t care.”