A former police officer exposed her corrupt fellow cops. Many people have been put in a difficult position where they see something wrong happen, but they feel like they can’t say anything out of fear of retaliation. When Shannon Spalding was faced with the decision to either turn a blind eye or speak up, she chose to speak up. In this emotionally charged talk, she explains why sometimes it is necessary to break the code of silence. Shannon Spalding is a police whistleblower and advocate for criminal justice reform. As an undercover narcotics officer with the Chicago Police Department, she exposed a ring of corrupt law enforcement agents who terrorized the South Side housing projects of Chicago and imprisoned nearly 500 people on false charges. Her story was the subject of a four-part exposé from The Intercept called “Code of Silence,” and she has been featured on major national and international news outlets such as NBC, Democracy Now!, and Al Jazeera. Shannon now works with The Exoneration Project, a legal team that works to overturn wrongful convictions. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx