On May 19, organizers and community members around the United States engaged in #SayHerName actions in support of women and femmes who have been harmed by state violence. This national day of action should have coincided with the start of the termination proceedings for Dante Servin, the Chicago police officer who murdered 22-year-old Rekia Boyd on March 22, 2012. Instead, Servin resigned on May 17, two days before an evidentiary hearing was scheduled to begin: as the last stage in his firing process.
Dante Servin has literally gotten away with murder.
For four years, Chicago activists and community members, led by Rekia’s family, have marched, protested, held teach-ins and attended Chicago Police Board meetings demanding that Servin be held accountable for taking Rekia’s young life. Every step of the way, Rekia’s family and supporters have been met with bureaucratic red tape preventing justice. From unnecessarily prolonged review periods, to the three years it took for the criminal case to face trial, to the technicality that enabled Servin to walk scot-free even though the presiding judge stated that he should have been charged with first-degree murder, each step illustrated the city government’s culture of complicity and “blue wall of silence.”
Here is the timeline of state violence and government missteps inflicted upon Rekia’s family for the past four years:
- March 21, 2012 – Rekia was shot by Chicago Police Department (CPD) officer Dante Servin.
- March 22, 2012 – Rekia was taken off of life support after doctors declared her brain dead.
- November 28, 2013 – Involuntary manslaughter charges were filed against Servin — 617 days (or one year, eight months and one week) after Rekia Boyd’s…