The Chicago Police Board voted to fire Sergeant Alex Wolinski, who led police officers to raid the wrong house in 2019 armed with a “no-knock warrant.”

The house belonged to Anjanette Young, a social worker who had just gotten off work. She can be heard screaming at the cops that they had the wrong house and no one else lived in her home.

The police ignored her and handcuffed her. When they broke down the door, Young was naked, changing into bed clothes. While the male officers challenged her, a female officer on the scene helped cover Young with a blanket.

This follows the scenario of what occurred in Louisville, Kentucky on March 12, 2020, when police killed Breanna Taylor, 26, by conducting a late-night raid, kicking in the door of the wrong apartment, looking for someone who did not live there.

Detective Myles Cosgrove fired the fatal shots that killed Taylor. Cosgrove was fired by the Louisville police, but he has since landed another job with the sheriff’s department in a nearby city.

Back in Chicago, then-police Supt. David Brown recommended that Woliski be fired.

Wolinski was charged internally with allowing a search warrant execution without adhering to the knock-and-announce rule, failing to intervene in disrespectful treatment toward Young by officers during the raid, failing to present Young with a copy of the search warrant, failing to notify a SWAT team supervisor about the raid, and allowing officers to handcuff Young while naked and keeping her in that position for an extended period of time – even after it was clear that the officers were in the wrong home.

The board found Wolinski guilty of all those charges and ordered him fired from the Police Department. Five board members voted to fire Wolinski.

Three members of the Police Board dissented – agreeing that Wolinski failed in his duties as a supervisor and violated many Chicago Police Department rules and policies, but disagreeing that his conduct warranted dismissal.

The dissenting members argued that Wolinski did not have control of the action, writing that he tried to de-escalate a chaotic situation – but did not have the skills to do so. 

Young received a $2.9 million settlement from the city in December 2021.