CPD officer faces suspension after marching in uniform at protest
- Raid Ghanimah wrote his battle-dress uniform during a 2023 protest
- Evidence includes body cam video, witness statements and social media posts
- If he doesn’t return to work, he won’t be served the recommended suspension
CHICAGO, UNITED STATES – NOVEMBER 18: Chicago police take security measures as thousands of pro-Palestinian demonstrators holding banners and Palestinian flags gather at Jackson Drive, blocking DuSable Lake Shore Drive in both directions in Chicago, United States on November 18, 2023. (Photo by Jacek Boczarski/Anadolu via Getty Images)
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CHICAGO (NewsNation) — An off-duty Chicago Police Department officer who participated in a pro-Palestine demonstration last year while in uniform is facing a 10-day suspension.
According to a police report obtained by the Chicago Sun-Times, Raid Ghanimah wore his black battle-dress uniform and carried Palestinian and Blue Lives Matter flags during a protest on Oct. 18, 2023.
The evidence gathered against Ghanimah includes officer body-worn camera video, witness statements and social media postings, according to the police report filed last month.
Ghanimah is accused of covering his name and star number on his uniform with tape and failing to identify himself to another CPD member when asked. He violated multiple department rules, including those prohibiting officers from engaging in political activities, per the report.
Off-duty officers participating in political activities cannot “wear a uniform or any part thereof that would identify the individual as a Chicago police officer” or “hold himself/herself out as a Chicago police officer,” according to the department’s rules.
Ghanimah, who has been on a leave of absence since early last year, is receiving an “ordinary disability” that pays half his salary for an unspecified injury, according to police pension board records reviewed by the Chicago Sun-Times. He’s applying for a “duty disability” that would pay 75% of his salary until his retirement, the records show.
A police department spokesperson told the Chicago Sun-Times that if Ghanimah doesn’t return to work, he will not be served with this recommended suspension.
