From the Comment Section
Long Rant. Below is an alleged reply to a letter someone wrote to Frank Main, the Slum Times reporter who published the name of the officer involved in the recent shooting in 017. NOTE! We have no way of knowing if this letter actually came from Frank Main. It could be a provocation of some sort. But it was in OUR comments section and we reserve the right to address it as public info on a public web site:
- I understand your concerns. This was an editorial decision made late Friday. The discussion was that we have routinely named civilians who have shot and killed attackers in self-defense and the same should apply to police officers. The department does not normally give out the names of officers in police-involved shootings and did not officially in this one either. Sources, however, confirmed the name. I told my editors the name and they decided we should run the name. It's not so much a practice by the media not to name the officers: it is simply that the media normally are not provided with the name of the officers and have grown accustomed to not asking. In any event, I have taken your concerns into account, as well as the other officers I have heard from on this. I'll have a discussion with my editors Monday so we can come up with a policy, instead of doing this case-by-case. I am not unsympathetic to your concerns. But I understand my editors' point that the officer, though off-duty, was involved in a public action by the nature of his being a sworn officer and evidenced by the police roundtable he went through after the shooting. I'm leaning toward not naming such officers in the future, but I have to talk it out with my bosses. Thanks for taking the time to write me.
First of all, a decision like this should not be made on the fly late on Friday night. We'd like the names of these "editors" so that we can explain to them the error of their ways. The civilians who are "routinely" named after killing in self defense aren't usually media savvy persons who realize reporters are going to publish their names and the circumstances of their indicents. Many times it is their neighbors who comment in their stead. The police are a bit wiser than that and know not to be so glib with their info.
The fact that the Department doesn't "officially" identify the officers involved is not surprising. WHAT IS FUCKING APPALLING is that this letter admits that the someone in the Department would "unofficially" identify an officer (the quote is "did not officially in this one either"). And then the letter writer ADMITS that he took a name and CONFIRMED it with SOURCES and then gave it to editors who ran with it.
If this letter is legit, (#1) Frank Main has a lot to answer for, (#2) the editors at the Slum Times have a lot to answer for and (#3) the spokesperson for the Department has a HELL OF A LOT to answer for if they even came near "unofficially" identifying an officer to the point his identity could be CONFIRMED BY SOURCES. The officer is the VICTIM. Why is the Department ("unofficially") and the media making him (and his family) potentially victims again? And what new low is the Slum Times going to sink to? Are they now going to publish the names of rape victims?
We'd call on the Department to do something with this: revoke press passes; investigate the "spokesperson" who identified the officer "unofficially"; maybe lay down a rule or two about identifying officers at all in the media. But the exempts can't even be bothered to stick up for our dead. Why would they do it for the living?
The fact that the Department doesn't "officially" identify the officers involved is not surprising. WHAT IS FUCKING APPALLING is that this letter admits that the someone in the Department would "unofficially" identify an officer (the quote is "did not officially in this one either"). And then the letter writer ADMITS that he took a name and CONFIRMED it with SOURCES and then gave it to editors who ran with it.
If this letter is legit, (#1) Frank Main has a lot to answer for, (#2) the editors at the Slum Times have a lot to answer for and (#3) the spokesperson for the Department has a HELL OF A LOT to answer for if they even came near "unofficially" identifying an officer to the point his identity could be CONFIRMED BY SOURCES. The officer is the VICTIM. Why is the Department ("unofficially") and the media making him (and his family) potentially victims again? And what new low is the Slum Times going to sink to? Are they now going to publish the names of rape victims?
We'd call on the Department to do something with this: revoke press passes; investigate the "spokesperson" who identified the officer "unofficially"; maybe lay down a rule or two about identifying officers at all in the media. But the exempts can't even be bothered to stick up for our dead. Why would they do it for the living?
posted by SCC at 12:01 AM
42 Comments:
Published early so we can head to bed.
FIRST!
SECOND.......I guess we wait and see now.
This reminds me of when I feed my fish, how when I drop the food in...they all gather to bite those morsels of food and you SHARKS all gather round and try to be first,second or say some unrelated stuff just to get on the web post for whatever reason. WHAT A F*CKEN WASTE OF BANDWIDTH YOU STUPID C*CKSUCKERS. ANYWAY...SSC check in and see what you can do to find out IF the letter is legit.
Only as a point of reference:
http://www.nbc4.com/news/8552003/detail.html
DC officer named within 24 hours for an on-duty shooting.
Also, and maybe I missed it, I'm not sure that Frank Main's quote could or should be taken as implying that Bond was responsible for the confirmation. By "sources" I think the context could reasonably be taken as "regular sources", but I don't see how that excludes, e.g., some of the exempts who talk to the media on the side.
11:52 Go take a deep breath, Its just a blog
just a blog.
This means everything here is an opinion.
Just an opinion.
That means your opinion may count or be relevent or irrelevent to all who read this.
In my OPINION, Frank f@cked up, we all do. What suck's in this situation is that this great policeman now has to watch his back and worry for a great while. Yes the department is the only one who released his name, and under our current policy of ACCOUNTABILITY it should be brought open to all who released his name...but it won't. Frank should take a suspension day or two, but he won't. So we all have statement's, who has an answer?
Any good OLD Chicago attorney's out there wanna do a pro bono case for Chicago cop? This guy's a hero! God bless him.
THE LEAKS
You can blame the news office of CPD for any leaks. They are staffed with a perfect sprikle of minority (I really don't want to call them police officers) people. Probably the sons, daughters, nieces, nephews, girlfriends or boyfriends (take that any way you want) of 35th St.
Any good promotion parties to crash?
yea...i got a party in my pants, your invited
Yea(H) the parties in your pant's, I can't wait! Got my magnifying glass, and tweaser's. By the way I'm the one in the pink shirt that say's 025 Tact. Hold on, your mom's on the phone...She say's it's your bed time, you have court in the morning.
you heard it here first, multiple calls to frank main were made with a "City of Chicago" paid for cellular telephone shortly after the incident...
Sorry, I don't see what the big deal is about naming the officer involved in the paper. If anyone's looking for revenge, they'll find out who he is soon enough, with or without his name being published in the paper. If private citizen's are being named, why not a P.O. Been the police for 30 years and still don't see the need for all this secrecy.
02:50:58
obviously you haven't been the police for 30 years.
sooner or later?
that says it all.
later is always better than sooner.
but with your 30+years of experience, you would know that retaliation is more likely sooner than later.
The media has a lot of people who pass on info to them. There were many people in this department who had access to the P.O.'s name. There were also many people outside of sworn department members who had access to his name. OPS, the States Attorney's Office and the M.E.'s office to name a few. I know 2 members of the D unit (1 sgt & 1 det) who keep every reporter in town in their cell phones. It's a little early to start putting this on News Affairs. With all the shit that was written about this P.O. on this blog, it's a little naive to think the members of this department would stand as one to protect him. The media are nothing but whores, did you expect any sense of responsibility from them.
Back when Serena Daniels shot LaTonya Haggerty, Andy Shaw (Ch 7) was waiting for the great Terry Hillard to come out of some building. Shaw stuck a microphone in Terry's face and asked him, "Is it the policy of the Chicago Police Department to shoot unarmed motorists carrying cell phones"? It was "gotcha journalism" at its best. The stupid look on Hillard's face was priceless. No wonder the media was so sorry to see him retire.
The sad thing is that Main sits around with his editors as they debate what they believe is their great responsibility to the public. No one in this country is more arrogant and self important than journalists. Over 2300 Americans have died in Iraq, yet every night I get a Bob Woodard update. I'm sure fame, fortune and adventure had nothing to do with Woodward being in Iraq.
The media in this country has torn down every single belief system that holds a society together. Religion, law enforcement, government, the military, etc. have been under attack for 40 years. Journalism died with the advent of television. Now it is about money and celebrity.
Journalists speak and write constantly about their responsibility to the American people. It is hubris of the worst kind. All they are doing is drinking the Kool-Aid and jerking themselves off. Its always all about them. Frank Main and his ilk are nothing but bitches.
ABOUT SECRECY
I also have been on the department for almost 30years. When I started I collected police baseball caps and wore police T-shirts and had all kinds of police stickers on my vehicles.
I let everybody know I was a cop, but now few people outside my closest neighbors now I am a cop. If I have to fill out any papers where it is not critical, I just put down that I work for the City if Chicago. I am still proud to be a cop no matter how those ding-dongs at 35th and Michigan try to make us nothing more than a bunch of bureaucrats.
Things are different now, and your security and the security of your family has to be considered. It’s not paranoia, there are people out there trying to get us or stupid enough to let our information get into the wrong hands. There are hackers and information merchants that try to get at city and department personnel computer files. I remember seeing bound copies of IBM paper with the name and vital statistics of every department member just thrown into the trash behind 11th and State. There have been raids on gang headquarters that have found similar documents. I hope the department bureaucrats are more careful with the trash now otherwise there might be a copy in Frank Main’s bottom desk drawer.
You guys are so f*#$ing paranoid, its pathetic! Its unfortunate the copper's name was printed, its unfortunate we have to be careful with who knows what, its unfortunate, but its part of the job. Come on,,,you guys whine and whine and whine...now if you're talking about the 'depositions' coppers have to give along with 'affidavits of assets and liability' that should really f*#$ing scare you!
Sorry, I don't see what the big deal is about naming the officer involved in the paper. If anyone's looking for revenge, they'll find out who he is soon enough, with or without his name being published in the paper. If private citizen's are being named, why not a P.O. Been the police for 30 years and still don't see the need for all this secrecy.
Then you've been a copper for 30 years in the slowest district in the city and haven't written a mover, parker or locked anyone up. Idiot.
To 3:11:56, very good! We should not be in such an uproar. The media r scum who have no conscious. They r all ego. They always think of a way to justify their actions. As the poster I mentioned stated. What do you expect from a bunch of bitches? The media r a bunch of tools and we need to remember that. We need to have in service training for all coppers on how to use the media to our advantage before they take advantage of us.
His license plate was there for all to see. I saw it on at least to TV stations. How hard do you think it for non-law enforcement to run it through the State.....NOT VERY HARD AT ALL. Assuming one of us leaked his name with out proof is just wrong.
SCC,
usually I'm on your side 80% of the time. Not this time.
Publishing then name IS WRONG !
We can't attempt to control the media. We can put financial pressure and I'm even for extra "police service" for them.
He had a source and verfied the information. How often do reportd in Chicago DO THAT?
Start targeting these assholes, jizz guzzlers (but not Jackie Bang!), fruits, and affirmative actions pencil dicks. Ticket the mopes, stop buying the papers, convince your family members to stop buying the papers,arm yourself to the teeth and buy a second home in Wisconsin. Fuck Chicago and the media. They don't count anymore (except Jackie Bang).
Thank you, Ms. Bange. we appreciate your candor.
8:59 AM
Seriously, you are an overreacting "cowboy". Unless you are just venting your frustrations, your proposals are downright stupid and self-defeating.
On two things we can agree: Jackie Bange is a nice person (and very easy on the eyes) and generally, the media are untrustworthy scum.
I feel your pain, my brother. For your own sake, you've got to chill out. Take a break and go up to Wisconsin for a few days.
You are delusional.
You can always trust the integrity of the Fourth Estate. Our mission is to inform the public of the TRUTH and let the chips fall where they may.
We would never let "political correctness", large sums of cash or our own personal agenda encroach on our mission.
Lest I forget, C.A.P.$. WORK$!
get rid of the cpd spokes person
Jackie Bange is not our friend, she has in the past been told the correct story and turned it around to make the police the culprits. If you remember when Haggerty and that police fighter from Evanston was shot the media blamed the White Police for over a month, even the 1's believed it and wanted are hide, it did change though when they relizede it was another 1, it's strange the 1's were not interested in pursuing criminal charges when they found out it was one of thier own. And don't be surprised if Bond said victim instead of offender on purpose I have heard she's played the card in the past on whites.
She is white...goof.
Not that there's anything wrong with it, but Bond is biracial.
James Bond likes black girls??
Of course, remember James with Hally Berry
Was Bond always a female???????????
It sounds to me that the unions (FOP/PBPA) should rectify the situation with the department.... NO OFFICER’S NAMES SHOULD BE GIVEN OUT in certain circumstances.
This should be enforced especially in today’s world; with various free searches on the internet one can find where an officer lives with no problem.
Names should not be given plain and simple. I am not worried about my own safety however I do have children and there are people who would prey on them if they had what sick reason they need. When I was single it didn't matter to me but I have to worry about my family.
Also remember the newspapers do not make any money from sales of papers to you. They make money by selling ad space. Let the big advertisers know you will boycott their business if they continue to do business with that paper. your pennies dont make a difference to the papers but your sales do make a difference to the advertisers
All we can do is start ticketing all those Sun Times trucks that deliver papers everywhere. It's real simple, hammer them every day all day. It's nothing personal, were just doing our jobs like the Sun Times reporters are doing they're jobs. The pen is sometimes mightier than the sword!!!
EVERY TIME WE TICKET A SUN TIMES DRIVER TELL THEM TO ASK FRANK MAIN TO TAKE CARE OF IT.
8:33 & 8:40
You're a fool.
8:33 & 8:40
You're a fool.
4/10/2006 09:33:52 PM
Well thought out. Why not say "I know u are but what am I?"
There already is a policy against giving out officers names, but there are plenty of big mouths on this job.
I LOVE JACKIE BANG!!!!!!!!!!!
It used to be that people went into journalism to report the news, now they do it because they want to change the world.
BOND IS NOT ONLY BIRACIAL, BUT ALSO BISEXUAL. FACT NOT FICTION
Is Monique a cunning linguist?
Put her in a cubicle with a gag in her mouth.
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