March 22 @ 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm CDT
This is the continuing Fourth Wednesday evening time for monthly discussion of the topics raised by recent Chicago area investigative reporting (if Sunday afternoons are more convenient, join us on Fourth Sundays). We use a mid-month to mid-month timeframe for these late month time slots, so this month, we’re looking at February 16-March 15 publishing dates. What we spend the most time on depends on where the interest of the group lies.
Google-generated summary follows. The list is assembled by a Google’s NotebookLM and Claude’s Opus 4.6, both of which (“whom”?) can and will make mistakes as well as the fuzzier domain of “errors of judgment”, so if you think it’s missed something important or is mistaking a conclusion, please email Ken Novak.
The biggest news is the City’s Office of Inspector General (OIG) issuing its annual Public Safety 2026 Annual Outlook, outlining its priorities for improving police accountability and discipline in the year ahead.
The OIG also issued reports:
- highlighting an underperforming 311 service system, described by frustrated residents as an unresponsive “black hole” for basic city repairs;
- flagging concerns about the city’s Department of Law improperly withholding hiring records from oversight;
- recommending reopening a disciplinary investigation into an officer who reportedly brandished a gun at the Westinghouse High School student.
Separately, an Injustice Watch investigation reveals systemic exploitation of Cook County’s tax foreclosure system, detailing a suspected fraud scheme involving recycled photographs and bogus court filings used to obtain millions of dollars in government refunds.
Public Safety And Employment Oversight
Between mid-February and early March 2026, the OIG issued multiple reports regarding city employment actions and police accountability (2, 4, 5). On February 17, 2026, the OIG published its 2026 outlook on police oversight, outlining efforts to improve the accountability and transparency of the Chicago Police Department and its disciplinary processes (4). Ten days later, on February 27, 2026, the OIG formally recommended reopening a specific CPD disciplinary investigation (5). On March 4, 2026, the OIG published an advisory concerning the Department of Law, noting that the department had improperly refused to provide “high profile” hiring records before eventually producing them in response to a covert Freedom of Information Act request (2).
City 311 Service Request System Audit
An audit by the City of Chicago Office of Inspector General (OIG) concluded that the city’s 311 service request system fails to provide users with clear information regarding request statuses, work order timeframes, or overall processes (3, 6). The OIG noted that community members described the system as a “black hole,” with residents reporting that online requests were frequently marked “complete” even when physical issues, such as unpatched potholes, remained unresolved in their neighborhoods (3, 6). The audit also identified that the 311 system has limited staffing capacity to proactively analyze complaint data to improve city services (3).
In response to the findings, the Office of Emergency Management and Communications (OEMC), which manages 311, acknowledged the need for improved communication with the public (3, 6). OEMC also stated that there is a need for more consistent training and communication with other city departments to address the system’s current limitations (3).
Tax Foreclosure Fraud Allegations
An investigation by the Cook County Treasurer’s Office identified what its researchers described to law enforcement as a “sophisticated conspiracy” involving real estate investor Greg Bingham (1). The internal probe alleged that Bingham’s companies filed fraudulent records — including recycled photographs of property damage with doctored dates, false affidavits, and bogus bankruptcy petitions — to exploit sale-in-error provisions in state law and obtain government refunds. The largest category of suspected fraud involved 145 refund cases from 2018 to 2024 that contained duplicate or doctored photographs, totaling more than $3 million (1). These refunds were paid by dipping into funds earmarked for municipal budgets, schools, parks, and libraries (1).
The Treasurer’s Office shared its findings with the FBI and the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, detailing instances where Bingham allegedly doctored dates on photographs submitted to Cook County judges (1). Bingham denies the allegations and has not been charged with a crime, while a spokesperson for the Cook County State’s Attorney confirmed their inquiry remains an active, pending investigation (1).
Source Citations
- Ballesteros, Carlos. “Taken by Taxes: The King of Liens.” Injustice Watch, March 12, 2026. https://www.injusticewatch.org/project/taken-by-taxes/2026/greg-bingham-king-of-liens/
- Chicago Office of Inspector General. “Advisory on Department of Law’s Cooperation with Oversight of Its Employment Actions.” Chicago Office of Inspector General, March 4, 2026. https://igchicago.org/publications/advisory-on-department-of-laws-cooperation-with-oversight-of-its-employment-actions/
- Chicago Office of Inspector General. “OIG Finds Lack of Clarity, Transparency in the 311 Request Process, Limiting Its Potential to Improve City Services and Risking Public Distrust.” Chicago Office of Inspector General, February 26, 2026. https://igchicago.org/2026/02/26/oig-finds-lack-of-clarity-transparency-in-the-311-request-process/
- Chicago Office of Inspector General. “Public Safety 2026 Outlook on Police Oversight and Accountability.” Chicago Office of Inspector General, February 17, 2026. https://igchicago.org/wp-content/uploads/2026/02/OIG-Public-Safety-2026-Annual-Outlook-.pdf
- Chicago Office of Inspector General. “Recommendation to Reopen Chicago Police Department Disciplinary Investigation.” Chicago Office of Inspector General, February 27, 2026. https://igchicago.org/publications/rec-to-reopen-cpd-log-2021-0004611/
- Feurer, Todd. “Chicago inspector general recommends changes to city’s 311 service request system.” CBS Chicago, February 26, 2026. https://www.cbsnews.com/chicago/news/chicago-inspector-general-audit-311-service-request-system/
Ken Novak is the President and the Program|Communications chair of the Circle.
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https://us02web.zoom.us/j/88112982706?pwd=SlRldUpsQzBibHBEdUN3ZzhxcUlPQT09
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