Chip reports on criminal justice from WBEZ’s bureau on Chicago’s West Side. His investigative and narrative reporting has earned dozens of local and national awards. He is a three-time winner of the Chicago Headline Club’s annual award for “best reporter” in broadcast radio.
Before Chip joined WBEZ in 2006, his base for three years was Bogotá, Colombia. He reported from conflict zones around that war-torn country and from several other Latin American nations. The reporting reached U.S. audiences through NPR, the BBC and daily newspapers including the Dallas Morning News and the Christian Science Monitor.
From 1995 to 2003, Chip focused on immigration and Latin America as editor of Connection to the Americas, winner of the 2003 Utne Independent Press Award for “general excellence” among newsletters nationwide.
Chip was born in St. Paul, Minnesota, and raised in nearby Falcon Heights. He earned a B.A. in History from the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
In Chicago, he lives with his partner and their daughter on the Northwest Side, where they founded the Humboldt Park Gators, an all-girls baseball team.
Chip Mitchell
Stories by Chip Mitchell
![]()
How the Waukegan cops behind a teen’s false confession avoided discipline
WBEZ has obtained a city-commissioned report detailing police blunders. But that review helped the officers avoid a formal investigation.
![]()
Waukegan cops who extracted a teen’s false confession to a shooting will face no discipline
But the north suburb has agreed to pay $200,000 to the 15-year-old, who was wrongly charged with attempted murder and jailed for two nights.
![]()
Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart tightens electronic monitoring for apartment dwellers
Slammed by an appellate court, his office clarifies that multi-unit building residents can’t be in common spaces such as the laundry room.
![]()
Chicago inaugurates dozens to Police District Councils in a historic step toward community oversight
Many council members want to help reform a Police Department plagued by abuse scandals.
![]()
Here are the lessons from two decades of Chicago’s failed policing strategies
In a new book, Wesley G. Skogan says stop-and-frisk helped cops seize guns but damaged community trust — and efforts to solve shootings.
![]()
A Brandon Johnson campaign consultant lost his own Chicago race by 1 vote but isn’t contesting it
Darius Newsome worked on Johnson’s faith-based outreach, but fell short of winning a police council seat in the mayor-elect’s home district.
![]()
Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart’s electronic monitoring rules are ambiguous, an appeals court finds
Tossing an escape conviction, the judges say it’s unclear whether detainees can get mail from their lobby or do laundry in the basement.
![]()
Five of Chicago Mayor-elect Brandon Johnson’s public safety promises — and obstacles
He’s vowed to add 200 detectives, shut off ShotSpotter, expand crisis teams, create trauma centers and beef up domestic violence efforts.
![]()
The Cook County sheriff is stopping lawyers from bringing documents to clients in jail
Tom Dart’s office says it is trying to prevent overdoses in the facility and looking for paper soaked in deadly drugs.
![]()
Rehiring retirees as a quick fix for Chicago Police could undermine reform, experts say
Throughout Chicago’s mayoral race, candidate Paul Vallas has said CPD retirees are low-hanging fruit for replenishing sworn police ranks.
