<p>Over his first six years as a Chicago cop, Joseph Vecchio ran with a troubled tactical unit and accrued more disciplinary complaints than any other cop.</p><p>On Thursday night, his tumultuous career was placed in serious jeopardy: The Chicago Police Board announced <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/crime/2026/08/20/chicago-police-cpd-copa-vecchio-snelling" target="_blank" >he faces firing</a> in two separate disciplinary cases.</p><p>By Friday afternoon, Vecchio was in police custody, accused of brutally attacking a woman earlier this week and holding her against her will, according to a police report.</p><p>The woman was only able to escape by scaling down a third-floor balcony when Vecchio left her unattended to grab a food delivery, the report says. She told police that Vecchio had once warned her that he wouldn’t need a gun to kill her — “he could just crack her head open.”</p><p>The attack happened Tuesday, according to the report. The following day, the woman appeared before a judge who issued an emergency order of protection. The judge also issued a warrant for Vecchio’s arrest.</p><p>A police spokesperson said Vecchio surrendered at the Central District station and was charged with a felony count of aggravated domestic battery. He's expected to appear at a detention hearing Saturday, according to a spokesperson for the Cook County state's attorney's office.</p><p>Vecchio’s attorneys couldn’t be reached for comment. His father hung up on a reporter.</p><p>According to the police report and court records, Vecchio jumped on top of the woman while she was laying in bed, then punched her in the head, kneed her face and choked her with both hands inside his Northwest Side home. The woman had difficulty breathing and suffered bruising to her face and body and a cut to her upper lip, the report says.</p><p>Vecchio made her wash the bed sheets and clear out the bathroom, and he wouldn't let her leave the apartment, according to the police report. When he stepped away to get the food delivery, she jumped from the third-floor balcony to the balcony below.
</p><p>On Wednesday, a day after her escape, the woman appeared before Cook County Circuit Judge Megan Goldish.</p><p>Goldish granted the woman an order of protection and ordered Vecchio to have no contact with her, court records show. An order signed by Goldish indicated there had been prior domestic violence.</p><p>Vecchio has been <a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdogs/2026/01/16/chicago-police-cpd-joseph-vecchio-misconduct-discipline-complaints-lawsuit-snelling-traffic-stop" target="_blank" >stripped of his policing powers</a> since Oct. 7, 2025 — a day after Chicago’s police oversight chief wrote a letter to then-police Supt. Larry Snelling, urging him to take that step.</p><div class="Enhancement" data-align-center>
<div class="Enhancement-item" data-crop="">
<figure class="Figure"><a class="AnchorLink" id="image-9b0000" name="image-9b0000"></a>
<picture data-crop="medium">
<source type="image/webp" width="490"
height="275"
data-srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/be3aed9/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3840×2155+0+1322/resize/490×275!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F7b%2F89%2Ff25039f34d86b6fbd219e294c9c1%2Fvecchio.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/1d9f98b/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3840×2155+0+1322/resize/980×550!/format/webp/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F7b%2F89%2Ff25039f34d86b6fbd219e294c9c1%2Fvecchio.jpg 2x" data-lazy-load="true" srcset="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIyNzVweCIgd2lkdGg9IjQ5MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4="
/>
<source width="490"
height="275"
data-srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/8d2b16a/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3840×2155+0+1322/resize/490×275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F7b%2F89%2Ff25039f34d86b6fbd219e294c9c1%2Fvecchio.jpg" data-lazy-load="true" srcset="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIyNzVweCIgd2lkdGg9IjQ5MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4="
/>
<img class="Image" alt="Vecchio.jpg" srcset="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/8d2b16a/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3840×2155+0+1322/resize/490×275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F7b%2F89%2Ff25039f34d86b6fbd219e294c9c1%2Fvecchio.jpg 1x,https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/513e3e4/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3840×2155+0+1322/resize/980×550!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F7b%2F89%2Ff25039f34d86b6fbd219e294c9c1%2Fvecchio.jpg 2x" width="490" height="275"
data-src="https://cst.brightspotcdn.com/dims4/default/8d2b16a/2147483647/strip/true/crop/3840×2155+0+1322/resize/490×275!/quality/90/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fchorus-production-cst-web.s3.us-east-1.amazonaws.com%2Fbrightspot%2F7b%2F89%2Ff25039f34d86b6fbd219e294c9c1%2Fvecchio.jpg" data-lazy-load="true" src="data:image/svg+xml;base64,PHN2ZyB4bWxucz0iaHR0cDovL3d3dy53My5vcmcvMjAwMC9zdmciIHZlcnNpb249IjEuMSIgaGVpZ2h0PSIyNzVweCIgd2lkdGg9IjQ5MHB4Ij48L3N2Zz4="
>
</picture>
<div class="Figure-content"><figcaption class="Figure-caption"><p>Former Near North District Cmdr. Michael Barz, right, stands with Officer Joseph Vecchio as he is awarded the 2024 First Responder of the Year Award by the River North Residents Association.</p></figcaption><span class="line"></span><div class="Figure-credit"><p>Provided by Tony Robins</p></div></div>
</figure>
</div>
</div><p>LaKenya White, the chief administrator of the Civilian Office of Police Accountability, noted that Vecchio had been the subject of 76 disciplinary investigations and had been accused of domestic abuse, civil rights violations and providing false statements about traffic stops involving guns.</p><p>“When COPA’s Policy, Research, and Development Unit conducted an analysis of complaint data since 2019, it revealed that Officer Vecchio has the highest number of log number investigations in the entire Department,” White wrote to Snelling.</p><p>“Although many of these cases are still under investigation, the increasing number of complaints against Officer Vecchio suggests the need for immediate intervention by CPD.”</p><p>Three of those cases came up at Thursday’s police board meeting, including the two that could now lead to his dismissal. He was suspended 15 days in the other case.</p><p>Both of the dismissal cases involve allegedly improper vehicle searches – the types of accusations that have dogged the Near North District tactical team that Vecchio previously worked on.</p><p>In one of those cases, COPA found, Vecchio lied about how a gun was recovered in formal reports and in court. Snelling had argued against any discipline but he was overruled by the board, which adopted COPA’s recommendation to fire Vecchio and advanced the case.</p><p>Arlette Porter, the board member who made the ruling, said body camera footage showed there was “no reasonable articulable suspicion” the man who was stopped was committing a crime.</p><p>“Officer Vecchio’s intentional inaccuracies, untruths, and misleading testimony before the Court was egregious and in direct contravention to CPD policy regarding honesty and accountability,” Porter wrote.</p><div class="RelatedList Enhancement" data-module data-align-center>
<div class="RelatedList-title">Related</div>
<ul class="RelatedList-items">
<li class="RelatedList-items-item">
<a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/crime/2026/08/20/chicago-police-cpd-copa-vecchio-snelling" target="_blank" >Chicago police officer who racked up most complaints now faces firing — in two cases</a>
</li>
<li class="RelatedList-items-item">
<a class="Link" href="https://chicago.suntimes.com/the-watchdogs/2026/01/16/chicago-police-cpd-joseph-vecchio-misconduct-discipline-complaints-lawsuit-snelling-traffic-stop" target="_blank" >Top cop benches Chicago police officer who racked up the most complaints in recent years</a>
</li>
</ul>
</div>
<p></p>
Chicago cop with most misconduct complaints charged with attacking woman as he faces firing 2026
IUSTITIA.BG – Investigations 2009-2026 2026-08-22 03:05:51
Latest news World news Country news Most important news latest news most important latest of the day Justice Petar Nizamov Feathers Petar Nizamov- Feathers Justice bg iustitia.bg iustitia iusticia usticia investigation Burgas Bulgaria news news of the last hour news of the day news of today Bulgaria news The news from Bulgaria blitz news top news most important most commented latest news Boyko Borisov news weather coronavirus news news weather facebook youtube facebook instagram news today news of the last minutes news today today news news bg news leading news hot news bg news site for news all news news bg news of the last hour latest latest news bg news of today news today news today news of the last hour latest news today news bg news news 24 hours news vesti bg novini news world bird bg bivol bg bivol trud bg novini latest news today novinite bg news hello bulgaria political party coat of arms delyan peevski scandalous Bulgarian National Television Free Europe Television scandal exclusive live tv live right now tv tv online tv program bg live now tv news online tv online live court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas court Burgas district court Burgas district court Burgas appellate court Burgas prosecutor Burgas prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Burgas district prosecutor’s office Prosecutor General Ivan Geshev Prosecutor Geshev Tsatsarov Ministry of Internal Affairs Burgas ODMR Burgas ODPR Burgas police Burgas district police Burgas prosecutor Tsatsarov SGS cases Varna court chairman of the SGS court decisions on civil cases decisions on cases Plovdiv court decision of the court decisions cases Varna court criminal cases district district court decisions work in the court SGS chairman of the SGS judges Sofia court post judges Plovdiv court Plovdiv judges Plovdiv Supreme Court Inspectorate Supreme Court Supreme Judicial Council lawyer lawyer criminal cases lawyer civil cases lawyer marriage cases lawyer administrative criminal law criminal process civil law civil process administrative law constitutional law
