Our Mission

Transparency as a civic right

SearchCPD is a free, open-source platform that gives Chicago residents direct access to public Chicago Police Department records — including officer rosters, badge numbers, unit assignments, and community-submitted reviews.

We believe that access to public information is a cornerstone of a functioning democracy. When residents can look up the officers who serve their communities, it creates a more informed relationship between the public and law enforcement — one built on mutual accountability rather than opacity.

In 2017, the U.S. Department of Justice released a report finding systemic issues within the Chicago Police Department. SearchCPD was built in response to the clear need for civilian tools that surface this kind of information in an accessible, structured way.

How It Works

Built on public data

Officer records on SearchCPD are drawn from publicly available City of Chicago datasets. Community members can supplement the record by submitting their own anonymous reviews — describing their experiences, uploading supporting media, and providing a rating. All submitted content is used to compute an aggregate community score per officer.

Over time, this data supports pattern analysis that can help community organizations, journalists, and city officials identify trends and take informed action.

Who We Are

Community-funded, open source

SearchCPD is an independent, nonpartisan project — not affiliated with any political party, government agency, or advocacy group. It is sustained entirely by community donations and volunteer contributions.

The codebase is publicly available. If you're a developer, designer, data scientist, or researcher who believes in civic technology, we welcome your contributions.