A nothing burger until he got down with ‘the cause’.
Via Officer Com:
Chicago police have cleared two officers of wrongdoing over allegations leveled by U.S. Rep. Bobby Rush that he had been racially profiled during a traffic stop last summer on the South Side, a police spokesman said Thursday.
Chief spokesman Anthony Guglielmi said the department’s Bureau of Internal Affairs found that the two Wentworth District officers acted properly because they had probable cause to make the stop. Earlier that day, officers at roll call had been told to be on the lookout for high-end vehicles because of a rash of thefts throughout the South Side.
The officers stopped Rush, who is black, in his Lexus RX after learning from a police dispatcher that its license plate was registered to a different vehicle, according to Guglielmi.
Later Thursday, Rush told the Tribune he complained to the Police Department to stand up for people in his community who have gone through “similar harassment” from police.
“There was no rhyme or reason for them to stop me,” he said.
The approximately 7 1/2-minute video — obtained by the Chicago Tribune through a Freedom of Information Act request — shows that throughout the stop, the officer and Rush spoke to each other in calm tones. However, at about six minutes into the video, Rush challenges the validity of the stop.
He asked for the officer’s name and star number, saying, “This is my district, and I have never been so embarrassed and humiliated.”
“Well, you shouldn’t be embarrassed, I mean, we’re …” a female officer said in a reassuring tone.
“Don’t tell me what I should be,” Rush responded without raising his voice. “I am what I am. What’s your name?”
Rush filed a complaint against the officers the same day, alleging he had been pulled over without legal justification because of the color of his skin. The female officer is Hispanic, and her partner is white.
Guglielmi said internal affairs investigators recently closed the case with a ruling of “unfounded.”
“The video footage from this traffic stop provides a firsthand look into the professional actions of Chicago police officers that occur throughout the city every day,” Guglielmi said. “It also displays the value of body-worn camera technology that allows us to ensure investigations are guided by the facts, provide officers due process, and protect the civil rights of every Chicagoan.”[…]
Rush was let go without a ticket. About an hour later, he filed a complaint about the alleged racial profiling.
The onetime co-founder of the Illinois Black Panther Party has been in Congress since 1993, representing parts of the South Side and Cook and Will counties. He was a Chicago alderman for a decade before that. He lost a race for Chicago mayor in 1999.
An ordained Baptist minister, Rush handily defeated Barack Obama in a primary challenge for the congressional seat in 2000, the former president’s only electoral loss.