No Shot Spotter = No Quick Response

CWB Chicago has the count at 14. Yet another murder victim found lying on a street previously monitored by ShotSpotter

14 people found lying in the street. Could any of these people have been saved by quick response from police and EMTs? We may never know. At least one body had been lying in an alley for 2 days.

This is the most recent incident.

A 911 caller reported that a man was laid out in the street in the first block of West 125th Street around 7 p.m. According to CPD, he was pronounced dead at the scene from a gunshot wound to the neck.

Not the only incident.

Several hours after the victim was found lying in 125th Street, another man was found fatally shot in the intersection of 100th Street and Indianapolis Boulevard. ShotSpotter previously monitored that area as well.

Why is CWB Chicago keeping count? Because a lot of people in the city were opposed to terminating the contract. Indeed two thirds of the city council wanted to keep it, but couldn't in the face of the mayor's opposition.

As of 12:01 a.m. on September 23, 2024, Chicago terminated its relationship with ShotSpotter, a gunfire detection system deployed in 12 of the city’s most violence-impacted neighborhoods.

What Happens When You Lower Standards and Make Work Unbearable?

The first thing that happens is you get a bunch of lower-performing people for the job. In this case, the job is working as a Chicago Cop. Young Chicago cops are being arrested or killed at alarming rates amid department's staffing crisis - Chicago Sun-Times

Seventeen cops hired since 2016 have been arrested and washed out of the police department, the Chicago Sun-Times found. Twenty-one more young officers have died, including seven killed in the line of duty and two others who were fatally shot.

Young cops have always died, that's why they partnered them with veterans. To teach them the ropes. But for cops to be arrested at this rate, something's changed.

64 recruits and officers hired since 2016 the Chicago Sun-Times identified as having been axed by the Chicago Police Department.

Twenty-five other early career cops have resigned while under investigation or quit to avoid being fired. Despite their disciplinary issues, 19 are now working for other police agencies across the state, according to state records.

So that's what happens when you change the selection criteria. When you make the job unbearable, people quit. Chicago Police Department exodus: New cops are leaving in droves, Sun-Times investigation finds.

One of every six Chicago cops hired since 2016 is no longer on the payroll. About 950 of the more than 5,750 people hired in that period have left. Their average time with the department? Not even three years. Many moved to suburban police departments.

The current and the most immediate past mayors of Chicago have been outright hostile to cops. Now I'm no apologist for Chicago PD, but the current oversight regime is biased against cops. They don't even hide it. And so people leave. Florida has been actively recruiting cops from Chicago. Better pay, better cost of living, better working environment.

As young Chicago police officers head for the exits, more and more veterans have been retiring in recent years, often before they reach their full pension status, a trend that’s been widely reported.

They can't keep the people being recruited, and the old-timers have had enough.

The hat tip for these 2 stories goes to Second City Cop: Manpower Crisis?

Who could have seen this coming?

(besides an "insignificant" blog, run by coppers, who were sounding the alarm on this over a decade ago....why would anyone listen to people working within the system for almost three decades?)

Click thru for some comments on changes in the recruiting criteria and what the problems are. In brief. SCC is always brief.

She Stopped Him from Being a Victim, He Then Tried to Rob Her

No good deed goes unpunished. Video shows off-duty cop fatally shoot man accused of grabbing her gun: COPA

The Left will dismiss this incident because she is a cop, but she was off-duty. This idiot wasn't stopped by her aura of cop-ness; he was stopped by fast-moving lead.

Video shows the off-duty officer, identified as Chicago Police Officer Precious Dunn, interrupt what appears to be an altercation between four people. Authorities at the time stated Dunn was attempting to stop a robbery.

The footage shows three of the individuals walking away from Dunn. One person, identified as 39-year-old Leevon Smith, stays behind and is seen talking with the off-duty officer.

As Dunn starts walking away, the video shows Smith grab her from behind. A struggle ensues.

As Colion Noir says in the video below...

God made men. Samuel Colt made me equal.

Without access to the means, the tools, of self-defense most women would be overpowered by most men. The old and the infirm would be at the mercy of the young and the violent, and anyone could be overpowered by multiple attackers.

Mr. Noir goes into the details about why would this guy attack someone who just helped him? Watch the video to find out.

This is Colion Noir's video Armed Chicago Woman Shoots Man Attempting To Rob Her, Now His Family Is Suing For 10 Million

The guy who got shot died, and the family of the dead guy is suing the cop because she was forced to defend herself. In the People's Republic of Illinois, she will probably lose.

Are They Trying to Stop Robberies?

It doesn't seem that the powers that be are worried about crime so much. Moments after 2 more armed robberies in Wicker Park, CPD boss orders cops to stop following men wanted for over a dozen hold-ups - CWB Chicago

You see car chases are dangerous. (So are dangerous criminals, but hey.) And so cops need extra special permission to pursue bad guys in Chicago.

An armed robbery crew that has struck repeatedly in Wicker Park and Avondale returned to the area to commit two more daylight robberies on Friday morning. Chicago police spotted the offenders as they fled from the second robbery scene, but a CPD supervisor ordered units not to follow the car onto the expressway. So, the armed men, wanted for more than a dozen armed and sometimes violent robberies, remain at large to commit more crimes.

They were armed, of course.

The order was meant to reduce the number of accidents and injuries to innocent bystanders during police chases. Chicago has paid out millions of dollars to settle lawsuits filed by crash victims and their families.

But one consequence of the city’s policy is that people who commit violent crimes remain on the loose to commit more violent crimes.

And they wonder why crime is on the rise in Chicago.

Chicago Cops At the Breaking Point

20 members of CPD have killed themselves since 2018. And now this. Cops In Crisis: After 3 Officers Die Of Suicide In A Month, Colleagues Say They’ve Reached A ‘Breaking Point’

Three Chicago police officers — Andy Dobda, Durand Lee and Patricia Swank — have died by suicide in the past month, highlighting a crisis within the agency, some said.

Weeks without a day off. Missing family milestones - like birthdays and graduations and vacations. And they don't have nice things to say about the limited counseling that is available.

Meanwhile, back in the self-delusional land of the Brass...

After Dobda’s death this weekend, Supt. David Brown held a news conference Monday where he defended the agency canceling days off and said the department hopes to soon be able to offer more help.

Because you can work people to death, tell them they suck, with no end in sight, drag them through scenes of trauma and mayhem, offer little in the way of support, and that won't have any repercussions. At least that is the position of Brown.

Should Cops Chase Murderers? Not According to CPD

It will be fine. Chicago police supervisor orders cops to stop chasing a carload of murder suspects (audio) - CWB Chicago

A Chicago Police Department supervisor on Saturday ordered patrol units to stop pursuing a car that officers saw being used by three gunmen in a murder just minutes earlier.

After being told to stop pursuing the car, a stunned officer responded, “The car wanted for the murder?

“This department’s a joke,” another said.

And they were murderers. They were seen doing the shooting, and the guy who got shot in the head died from his injuries. But that isn't good enough for the powers that be in Chicago. Just let them go.

So obviously this is impacting morale. What will it do to attrition?

I Actually Thought This Policy Was Already in Place

Lightfoot and the other anti-law-and-order types have been talking about it for some time. Chicago Police unveil new foot pursuit policy: chases will no longer be acceptable just because someone runs - CBS Chicago

Chasing someone on foot is dangerous.

"As mayor, I'm directing that a new policy be in place before the summer," Mayor Lori Lightfoot said in April of last year.

And at that time, CPD shot two people who were armed. Both died.

And if it is unfair to put violent criminals in jail, you can imagine how Mayor Groot and the non-prosecuting attorney for Chicago and Cook County, Kim Foxx, feel about killing them.

Why would anyone want to be a Chicago cop right now?

An Unhappy New Year

In Chicago. And elsewhere. On Chicago: Merry Christmas and an Unhappy New Year | Chicago Contrarian

Second City Cop is posting at Chicago Contrarian these days. Its a good thing, but his message about the prospects for 2022 sound bleak. And while he understandably focuses on Chicago, I doubt that most other large cities are in better shape.

Mayor Lightfoot said that merchants in Chicago should hire more security. And then she blew a gasket when a north-side neighborhood did exactly that. And the situation is not going to get better anytime soon.

Districts across the city are going to see a 10-to-15 percent manpower reduction next year, 20-to-25 percent on the day shift alone. Most Districts are experiencing it right now. Lightfoot cut 600 unfilled positions, 800 cops hit the retirement door in 2021, another 200 lateraled away to other departments and 900 more are scheduled to leave in 2022. When the retro-checks hit bank accounts in January, would anyone be surprised if another few hundred cops said, “See ya!” and left overnight?

As for recruiting to make up the numbers, click thru for the dismal statistics. I will only quote one incident.

The first week of December, the Academy was slated to start a class....of fourteen cadets. Eight showed up. Class was canceled until they could get it over twenty-five, which might have happened this past Monday. So yeah, Lightfoot is going to hire her way out of this disaster, especially after two years of demonizing the entire profession, removing every tool that has been proven to work in policing and failing to hold anyone responsible for criminal behavior....unless you’re an officer making a minor procedural error. Then it’s the gallows for you!

The police are going to decide - if they haven't already - that actually policing in Chicago is a losing proposition. Some will stick it out for the next few years until they retire. The newbies, if there are any left, will head elsewhere. The cops with 10 to 15 years on the job will probably keep their heads down and disengage. Or leave if things are bad enough, and they sound like they are bad enough. Though maybe in another few years things will start to get better again.

The problem is I don't think the voters in Chicago will stop voting for people like Groot (Mayor Lightfoot) or Crimesha (State's Attorney Kim Foxx). And as long as they do, law and order will deteriorate, because the Rule of Law is not as important as Social Justice.

You Think Things Are Bad In Chicago? Wait for 2022

Second City Cop has some observations. On Chicago: You Think It's Bad Now? | Chicago Contrarian

I write a lot about Chicago, because it was home for a very long time, but I don't think any other large city in America is that much different. Crime is out of control everywhere, and getting worse.

Oh, and things REALLY are bad in Chicago and Cook County.

It starts with an alderman asking why are there so many uniformed officers in HQ pushing paper that could be pushed by non-uniformed-employees. There are answers, and then the real question behind the question.

And why is Ervin asking this question? Why now? There isn’t anything in the news....not directly. But if you surf over to HeyJackass.com you might catch a glimpse of the reasons:

• Loot-a-palooza: If it’s slowing down, it’s only because the stores are leaving;
• Michigan Avenue occupancy: We heard it’s down nearly 20 percent, but the city is probably lying;
• Carjackings: It'll be 1,500 before the year ends;
• Homicides: Closing on 800 — up over 300 from two years ago.

By the way, Cook County recorded 1,000 homicides for the first time in twenty-seven years, so congratulations are due to Toni Preckwinkle, too.

Actually Chicago passed 800 homicides over the weekend. That is a number the city hasn't seen in decades.

And the cops? Between the "defund the police" nonsense, and city hall/brass screwing them over on days off and excessive overtime, cops are leaving.

Meanwhile, Mayor Lightfoot eliminated 600+ positions in the 2020 budget, the Department is experiencing a massive retirement wave (over 900 this year) and according to an e-mail we received yesterday, another 900 officers are declaring their intent to retire in 2022. We assume everyone saw the District bid lists for next year?

• A 20-to-25 percent manpower cut for all day watches across the city. We're talking about entire Districts being ALL 10-99 units and DOWN two-to-four beat cars....Every. Single. Day. Maybe Ervin is onto something?
  

None of this takes into account younger officers who just up and leave for other departments. We can say we have never seen the amount of officers leaving in the middle of their careers that we are seeing now. Conservatively, we’d estimate it at 250 this year alone, perhaps more.

Click thru for more details on the cops sheltered at HQ, on the fact that no one is taking the entrance exam, even though the city relaxed the standards. And more.

So what happens when carjackings double again, as they did over the past 5 years? What happens when murders top 1000 in the city? When all of the stores have been looted so much, by people immediately turned loose that they all close their doors? What happens when you call 911 and there is no one available to respond? What happens to our large cities then?

Cops Are Leaving Chicago

Can you blame them? Burnout And Low Turnout Of Applicants Leaving CPD With Officer Shortage; ‘People Don’t Want To Be The Police’

Chicago police officers aren’t only retiring in record numbers, many are leaving the big city department for smaller ones.

It’s contributing to an officer shortage that many city leaders believe will only get worse before it gets better.

The politicians are cooking the books, when it comes to vacancies in the department, but the real number is that they are down about 1600 officers.

You can't, as the politicians (including Superintendent Brown) in Chicago think that they can, continually cancel days-off, demand extra hours and extra shifts, and not have people burn out.

There is some good info in that article, but it is most interesting for the interview with a ex-Chicago PD member, who now polices in a smaller department.

Hat tip to The Post Millennial, and Gates of Vienna.

“A city out of control and in a downward spiral”

Things are going to get much worse before they get better in our big cities. Chicago police officers caught in roiling mess of fear, shock, anger — and hesitation

Cops “are disgusted with the spectrum of every profound decision made under stress being parsed and analyzed to death,” a police source said. “And, yes, there is talk of standing back instead of risking their family’s future on an honest mistake of a moment.”

I think the big cities, because Chicago is not alone in this, are going to discover what happens when you don't insist on ANY enforcement of the rule of law. Worse than they have now. Or in other words, "How low can you go?"

“They’ve been working 12-hour days with no days off for weeks, maybe a month due to soaring crime; eight fatalities every weekend, 50 shot, a city out of control and in a downward spiral,” the source said.

“The cops are being held accountable, probably to 15 agencies, but nobody seems to be calling the politicians to be held accountable ... or anyone in this s- - -storm,” the source added.

Shooting and murder are increasing at alarming rates, carjacking is out of control. And what is the City Council spending time on? Renaming Lake Shore Drive, because that is the most critical issue facing the city at this time.

It really was a magnificent city, once upon a time.

Chicago PD Brass Is Lying About Crime

I would pretend to be shocked, but I can't even pretend that a Chicago politician would lie. Snow job: CPD top cop boasts carjackings "down" 20% in February (doesn't mention blizzards) | CWB Chicago

And make no mistake... Chicago Police Supt. David Brown is a politician.

It’s so ridiculous, we almost couldn’t believe our eyes Tuesday. But there it was.

Chicago Police Supt. David Brown went on Twitter to brag that carjackings were down 20% during the first two weeks of February compared to the last two weeks of January.

Of course if you compare this year to last year, the numbers tell a different story. If you look at February 2020 versus 2021, there was about twice the number of carjackins than last year. Hard to spin that though.

And why the decline versus January? Can you spell "Polar Vortex?"

Meanwhile, the National Weather Service’ Chicago office sent a few tweets Tuesday, too.

“So how about these past three weeks Windy City??” the weather service tweeted. “Three winter storms, lake effect snow, blowing snow, heavy wet snow, light fluffy snow…you name a snow and the city has seen it. It’s the snowiest 3-week stretch for the city since the historic 1978-1979 winter.”

I blame Global Warming for that, by the way.

Anyway there is more at the CWB Chicago story linked above.

Alice Clement: One of The First Women Detectives in Chicago

Just one of the many things you trip over on the internet.

She was one of ten women who joined Chicago PD on August 5th of 1913. Alice Clement: The Detective Wore Pearls

To call Alice Clement “one of” anything is like calling the Unsinkable Molly Brown a survivor of a boating accident. “She may not have been the first policewoman in the country,” says Dennis Bingham, a historian with the Chicago Police—that honor went to Alice Stebbins Wells of Los Angeles. “But she was without a doubt the most prominent. She carried a gun; she had the power of arrest,” and she used it. Not to mention “the furs, the heels, and the jujitsu,” he says. “She was a remarkable woman.”

She was a bit of a celebrity in her day, even appearing in a movie, that was about her of course.

The article isn't long, and is pretty good. Hat tip goes to Rejected Princesses (Well-behaved women seldom make history).