Snow Removal?

We don't know why, but the Slum Times was praising Rahm's snow removal efforts the other day:

• Mayor Rahm Emanuel has survived his first Chicago weather emergency. Give the man his due.
  
  He reportedly was on vacation in Indonesia with his family until Monday, which drew the ire of critics who felt he should have been here in town directing every snowplow like mayors of old. But the plows rolled and the warming centers opened and the schools — if just in time — were closed. As for the 1,500 flight cancellations at O’Hare and Midway, has there ever been a big storm that did not paralyze the airports?
  
  Emanuel, that is to say, did not do a Bilandic. He did not fall on his face during the big freeze of 2014 the way Mayor Michael Bilandic flopped during the blizzard of 1979. On the contrary, city services performed about as well as one might expect. We can’t see some would-be Jane Byrne scoring points against Emanuel on this one.

You'd think that Rahm was out there driving a plow himself. The Slum Times even found an opportunity to toss a zinger at the blog:

• This did not discourage some bloggers. They bemoaned that every side street was not instantly cleared. “Sit back and watch the show,” one commentator on a cop blog wrote. “Did Tiny make it back from vacation? Maybe he should leave his bags packed because his minions are doing a s--- job of handling snow removal on the streets at the airports.”

Ouch. That hurt. We mean, it's not like cops have any insight into the actual conditions of the street. It's not like we're driving around 24/7 hitting the main streets, side streets, boulevards, alleys, or whatever and might feel the need to report back to other cops that, "Hey, you know what? Driving really sucks at the moment."

It seems an aldercreature noticed the same thing though:

• Alderman Roderick T. Sawyer (6th) is speaking out about budget constraints that he says restricts the amount of salt that can be used on the side streets in his ward.
  
  Sawyer issued a news release Thursday saying he was "shocked" to discover that trucks his Sixth Ward were restricted to one load of salt to use on side streets.
  
  "The accumulation of slush on our side streets is not only dangerous for my residents, but this slush is pulled out on the arterial streets which make conditions unsafe for all travelers," Sawyer said in the release. "This is the first big snow storm of the year and we cannot allow budget constraints to decrease the safety in my community."

Then Roderick goes and blows the whole thing by implying it might be racial:

• ....Sawyer insists the trucks were put under a salt restriction, and says he "cannot be handicapped by closed door policies made without consultation and applied inequitably throughout the city."

Don't worry Rod - the streets sucked throughout the city. It's a Rahm-thing, not a racial thing.

"Thumb in the Eye"

Once again, the president lives down to expectations:

• President Obama has nominated Debo Adegbile to be Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Rights Division. Adegbile is best known for heading up the NAACP Legal Defense Fund’s race-based assault on the integrity of a dead Philadelphia police office in a quest to get his murderer, Mumia Abu-Jamal, off of death row. Adegbile is thus the perfect nominee to serve in the position held during most of the Obama administration by radical race-monger Tom Perez, now Obama’s Secretary of Labor.
  
  Abu-Jamal, who shortly after shooting officer Daniel Faulkner proclaimed “I shot the mutha fuckah and I hope the mutha fuckah dies,” holds cult status among some leftists. This probably meant that, if anything, Adebile’s efforts on Abu-Jamal’s behalf were considered a plus by Obama and Eric Holder. You can learn more about this case from the book written by Faulkner’s widow and Michael Smerconish.

The National FOP rips Obama a new one:

• As word of his nomination spreads through the law enforcement community, reactions range from anger to incredulity. Under this nominee’s leadership, the Legal Defense Fund of the NAACP volunteered [its] services to represent Wesley Cook, better known to the world as Mumia Abu-Jamal — our country’s most notorious cop-killer.
  
  There is no disputing that Philadelphia Police Officer Daniel Faulkner was murdered by this thug. His just sentence — death — was undone by your nominee and others like him who turned the justice system on its head with unfounded and unproven allegations of racism.
  
  [...]
  
  This nomination can be interpreted in only one way: it is a thumb in the eye of our nation’s law enforcement officers. It demonstrates a total lack of regard or empathy for those who strive to keep you and everyone else in our nation safe in your homes and neighborhoods — sometimes giving their lives in the effort.

The president is showing nationally what everyone in Illinois knows of it's democrats - they do everything in their power to undercut the rule of law along with disrespecting those who serve.

Rahm Surrenders....Sort Of

Instead of wasting many more hundreds-of-thousands of dollars, Rahm is bowing to the inevitable....with conditions:

• Mayor Rahm Emanuel indicated today that he won't fight a federal court ruling that struck down Chicago's ban on gun stores and instead will ask for six months to come up with rules.
  
  The mayor didn't offer specifics on how his administration will try to retool the city's gun ordinances to meet the court standard. But he said he isn't appealing the ruling because the city keeps losing the court cases and he doesn't like litigation for litigation's sake.
  
  “Though I fully disagree, the city has little option but to follow the ruling of the court. I’ve instructed the Law Department to work with public safety experts and community leaders to create a comprehensive set of restrictions on the sale of firearms to ensure that illegal guns don’t find their way into the hands of criminals or straw purchasers,” Emanuel said.
  
  The strategy is a departure from that of predecessor Richard M. Daley, who tended to appeal setbacks on Chicago's strict gun laws all the way to the U.S. Supreme Court.

According to our good friend and NRA Lobbyist Todd Vandermyde, the fees alone for this latest court fight are already in the neighborhood of $500,000. We expect that giant City of Chicago novelty check with the mayor's signature prominently displayed will be making the rounds shortly.

Rahm has conditions though:

• Mayor Rahm Emanuel said Thursday he will abide by a federal court ruling he views as a “straitjacket” — by allowing gun dealers to set up shop in Chicago — but needs six months to figure out where to put them.
  
  Aside from building a protective bubble around schools, Emanuel refused to say where he believes gun shops should be confined or how he intends to comply with Monday’s ruling and still keep illegal guns out of the hands of criminals and straw purchasers.

Vandermyde has a suggestion to the city's foot-dragging:

• Todd Vandermyde, legislative liaison for the National Rifle Association, welcomed the mayor’s decision to throw in the towel, but not the six-month delay.
  
  “The city is becoming a little more sensical in their litigation approach, but they can figure this out a lot quicker than that,” Vandermyde said.
  
  “There are a lot of other towns that have gun shops. They seem to have figured out that it’s a retail business that fits in a retail zone.”

And of course, it wouldn't be proper if the supernintendo didn't have something nonsensical to say:

• After joining the mayor in presiding over a CompStat hearing at police headquarters, Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy noted that Chicago’s second murder of 2014 involved a legal handgun that was stolen in a burglary because the gun owner “did not properly safeguard” that weapon.

So you see? It's all the fault of you legal gun owners that a criminal burglarized a house, stole whatever wasn't nailed down, and sold it for pennies on the dollar for a quick heroin fix and then that gun ended up being used in a crime. And don't you dare bring up the massive manpower shortage that enabled a criminal to break into a house unmolested by the police. Or the complete absence of Evidence Techs that don't even show up to print a crime scene any more. Or the lack of detective manpower that might have pursued and apprehended the ne'er-do-well before he was able to sell the gun. Or the Cook County justice system that set him loose twenty times before this burglary.

It's the eeeeeeevil guns that are to blame!

Squad Policing Problems

Already? Did anyone not see this coming?

• So the squad scheduling is off to a rough start. promises of being with your partners pretty much came and went.
  
  Just an FYI to the sgts running these things. This is not a tact team. On a tact team you are requested and most of the time you like the sgt you are working for. This is not the case. We are force fed these sgts. I understand chain on command, and i understand they are white shirts we are blue shirts. But 012 has already been rocked enough with the disaster of merging with 013, then in the same year we are told well squad scheduling, then change your day offs, then lose a partner, then the icing on the cake the start times and now the end times as well, then the cherry not everyone is included in this squad scheduling (ie, foot guys, school cars, bicycle fixed it posts, imaginary foot posts to work in commanders office, 3 time keepers, the list goes on and on).
  
  But Micromanaging this is not going to work in your favor squad leaders. Now everyone understands there are rules, lets not get pimpy here. remember squad leaders you need us for activity. Keep screwing with the troops and see where that gets everyone. Anyway 3 more years and i am done thank god. What was once a great job has turned into shit. 012 was great, before all this, wish we could just go back to a shitty station, no air, and green shit in the locker rooms. You young guys this to shall pass. 003, and 024 good luck if it is anything like what 012 is going thru you will need it.
  
  Dont be surprised if this doesnt go citywide.

Actually, we figure the more unhappy people are, the better the chance Rahm will force it down every District in the city. He has no incentive to keep anyone happy. He wants you to quit at 20 years, earlier if something else comes your way. Rahm's driving ambition is to destroy the pension system, and he's well on his way. Pissing off and stressing out coppers so they quit in disgust years earlier than planned? That's just a side benefit.

Rauner is a Plant

No one, and we mean no one, can tell us this ass is a serious political candidate after today:

• Veering 180 degrees in a stunning political turn, millionaire private equity investor Bruce Rauner said Wednesday he misspoke and was “flippant” when he appeared to advocate a rollback last month in Illinois’ minimum wage.
  
  In fact, Rauner now says he wants to see the minimum wage increase.
  
  “I have to be careful about my words, and I didn’t choose my words carefully enough,” Rauner told the Chicago Sun-Times in an interview following a report about his statement before a business group in the Quad Cities last month.

You can't pass this off, even as a "rookie" mistake. It just isn't done. There shouldn't be a republican across the entire state who thinks this guy is a viable candidate now. Hopefully, his entire candidacy just flew off the rails.

Broken System

And herein lies the entire problem with Felony Review:

• Two years earlier, Pantoja was accused of fondling a young relative, showing her pornographic images on his cellphone, laying on top of her in a van and refusing to let her leave, according to court documents.
  
  In that case Chicago police asked for a felony review of charges from the Cook County state's attorney's office after Pantoja allegedly "touched the victim uninvitingly on various parts of her body," including her buttocks, and made contact with her breasts, the arrest report states.
  
  That request was denied because of conflicting statements from the victim and because prosecutors were not certain they could meet the statutory requirement of proving Pantoja had experienced sexual gratification, said Dan Kirk, chief of staff for State's Attorney Anita Alvarez.

It isn't really up to prosecutors to determine if the statutory requirement is met - that's a determination for a jury to make once they hear all of the evidence presented. It's a legal nuance lost on those who don't spend time in court, but symbolic of a "we know better than a panel of citizens" prevalent throughout liberal thinking.

That's statement is an admission by Kirk that the State's Attorney "tries" each and every case prior to an actual trial. It means that the State's Attorney is more concerned with a conviction rate than actually trying cases. You can see that in the next paragraph:

• Chicago police then charged Pantoja with misdemeanor domestic battery. The state's attorney's office later dropped that charge in exchange for a two-year order of protection.

The State should be more concerned with allowing a jury to hear the evidence and render a verdict than with campaigning and bragging about a conviction rate. Plea-dealing everything down to lower charges, time served, or orders of protection undercuts the entire process. Criminals see no deterrent in the system, victims are victimized by the criminal and then by the system, police are frustrated by the revolving door, the political wing isn't held accountable for errors/miscarriages, the list goes on.

Broken.

Justice System Hates Minority Victims

If you're a minority woman and a victim in Cook County, "don't expect justice" appears to be the message being pressed by the system yesterday:

• Stumbling over a defense attorney’s questions after revealing intimate details of a rape she said she suffered in August at the hands of a Belmont-Cragin man, a Hispanic woman testified in front of a Cook County judge last summer that she didn’t fully understand English.
  
  The attorney cross-examining the Spanish-speaking woman asked if it would be easier for her to answer with an interpreter, and she said, “Yes, please.” Instead, Cook County Judge Laura M. Sullivan asked the defense attorney to rephrase the question, and the Sept. 17 preliminary hearing continued, according to a transcript obtained by the Chicago Sun-Times.
  
  When it ended, records show, the judge found there was no probable cause and effectively dismissed a criminal sexual-assault charge against Luis Pantoja, 25. He was released from the Cook County jail the same day, authorities said, but on Tuesday, he was ordered held again in lieu of $2.5 million bail.

Seriously? The victim was so confused that THE DEFENSE ATTORNEY ASKED FOR AN INTERPRETER so the victim, the prosecutor's main witness, could appropriately answer his questions.

But the judge told him to rephrase the question and continue the questioning without getting an interpreter.

Pardon our French, but what the fuck? If the defense attorney recognized a problem, it is appalling that the judge didn't, let alone the ASA prosecuting the case.

Anita's Chief of Staff, the infamous Dan Kirk, is backfilling like there's no tomorrow:

• But Dan Kirk, chief of staff to Cook County State’s Attorney Anita Alvarez, said there seemed to be no need for an interpreter — despite the alleged victim’s interactions with multiple prosecutors — until that “blistering” cross-examination.
  
  “From what I can glean, nobody in that courtroom, you know, came to the conclusion that an interpreter was legitimately needed,” Kirk said.
  
  And at that point, he said, the judge was in charge of the courtroom.

And you can tell that the Cook County Court people are nervous because Chief Judge Tim Evans' people are making press releases:

• On Tuesday, the Cook County chief judge’s office said in an email that judges can’t comment on pending matters. It sent that note after the Sun-Times sought comment this week from Sullivan and her presiding judge.

The Sun Times actually got a transcript of the hearing:

• Public Defender: “Isn’t it true that you wanted to have sex with him and you wanted him to wear a condom?”
  
  Woman: “Yes.”
  
  PD: “And he did wear a condom, didn’t he?”
  
  Woman: “He didn’t.”
  
  PD: “He did not?”
  
  Woman: “No.”
  
  PD: “Then you wanted to have sex a second time; isn’t that right?”
  
  Woman: “No.”
  
  PD: “Did you have sex a second time?”
  
  Woman: “No.”
  
  PD: “You only had sex one time at the [relative’s] house?”
  
  Woman: “No. Never.”
  
  PD: “I thought you said that you did have sex?”
  
  Woman: “No, because I didn’t, that’s why I told my lawyer that sometimes I don’t understand because I don’t completely speak English. I’m trying to explain the best I can.”
  
  PD: “Would it be easier for you if you had an interpreter?”
  
  Woman: “Yes, please.”
  

You can't tell us that the entire cross didn't get fucked up by the phraseology that the Public Defender used in the opening line - "Isn't it true...." The rest of the cross examination was built upon that misinterpretation by someone who obviously knows very little English and is uncomfortable with the nuances of legal proceedings. Even coppers who end up on the stand regularly have to pause when the defense starts with double-negatives, blanket assumptions, "Isn't it true..." or "Would it be safe to say..." type questions meant to throw you off your stride. A foreign-born non-English speaking person wouldn't have a chance. In fact, that's exactly what happened:

• The woman later told the prosecutor she did not, nor did she want to, have sex with Pantoja in his bedroom. She said she didn’t understand the public defender’s question.

So now we find out that not only did Anita's people drop the ball, failing to have an interpreter on hand, the judge blew her responsibility to ensure that the proceeding was conducted properly and in manner to elicit proper testimony for a fair hearing.

You can tell that this one has the potential for a lot of damage to the political set seeing as how the State's Attorney and the Chief Judge have their mouthpieces out there front-and-center. A minority woman fell through the cracks due to the negligence of Anita's office (minority female), the judge (female) and the system (run by a minority chief judge). And another minority teen female paid a horrendous price.

We'll guarantee this though - that jagoff rapist is gong to have a proper interpreter versed in both Spanish and Sign Language at all of his hearings. Take it to the bank.

Quinn Rakes in Out-of-State Cash

Quinn is having a problem with the local unions. They finally realize that Quinn has been lying to them for years, has actively undermined pension promises, and is pretty much doing to them everything that he and fellow dems insist evil republicans are going to do if they ever get elected. But that isn't stopping him from raking in union money from the national unions:

• Gov. Pat Quinn is picking up jumbo checks from trade union political action committees based in the D.C. area. Quinn’s Taxpayers for Illinois main campaign fund will show $4.75 million cash-on-hand with the governor picking up the pace of his fund-raising as he builds an election-year warchest.
  
  In the last quarter, Quinn will be reporting raising $1.85 million. He will tip the $2 million mark collected in recent months with additional checks received after the Dec. 31 4th quarter deadline.
  
  I earlier reported that the United Association Political Education Committee, based in Annapolis, Md., sent Quinn a $100,000 check.
  
  While Illinois public service unions have issues with Quinn, the labor movement–almost all part of the Democratic family–does not speak with one voice.
  
  Other national trade union PAC contributions to Quinn’s campaign fund are, according to his campaign:
  $150,000 from the IBEW, the electrical workers union PAC
  $100,000 from the IUPAT, the International Painters PAC
  $100,000 from the Laborers Union PAC.

National unions undercutting their own local state members who might wish to use their money to force certain issues.

Attacks Begin on RINO Rauner

Let's hope the message resonates:

• In one of the most comprehensive campaign criticisms leveled in the early Republican primary season for governor, the running mate of state Sen. Kirk Dillard assailed rival Bruce Rauner's wealth and connections and questioned whether he was a "true Republican."
  
  The criticisms leveled by the Hinsdale lawmaker's candidate for lieutenant governor, state Rep. Jil Tracy of Quincy, came as Rauner embarked on a weather-delayed bus tour of the state, starting in southern Illinois. Tracy labeled the tour a "stunt."
  
  "I think we have to face the fact that someone that does have quite a number of homes and is a billionaire might be out of touch somewhat with the average Illinoisan that's facing losing his home," Tracy said, playing the traditional attack role of a running mate.
  
  "I don't think Bruce is a true Republican candidate," she said in a conference call with reporters. "I think that his close associations with Democrats and (Chicago) Mayor Rahm Emanuel and Democratic candidates nationally and statewide prove otherwise."
  
  Rauner, an equity investor, has a close relationship with Emanuel and helped the mayor get into the financial equity business prior to Emanuel's election to public office. Rauner's name also has been linked to donations to several Democrats in the past, though Rauner has said many actually came from his wife, Diana. He also voted in the 2006 Democratic primary, backing Forrest Claypool's failed bid for Cook County Board president.

Seeing as how Madigan runs a pretend republican against himself every four years, it's more than possible, even probable, that Rauner is a plant by the Machine/Combine to give Quinn another term in the big seat. And if by some miracle, Rauner actually won, well, he's beholden to Rahm and Madigan as it is, so what's the loss to them?

You have to love how he got Rahm into the financial equity business (where Rahm "acquired" upwards of $12 million) and then he blames his wife for checks written to democratic candidates in previous elections.

Media Doing Its Job?

It's like a freakin' miracle or something - and all it took was an insignificant blog pointing out the amazingly obvious facts:

• The young woman from the Northwest Side had stopped paying attention to the news.
  
  Ever since last summer, she didn’t want to hear it.
  
  But a friend told the 24-year-old woman to take a look Sunday. So she did. And she saw the face of Luis Pantoja, the man who made headlines after police accused him of the December sexual assault of a 15-year-old girl.
  
  He’s the same man prosecutors accused in August of raping the 24-year-old woman in an alley. That attack allegedly happened less than a mile from the scene of the brutal assault on the 15-year-old.
  
  The 24-year-old woman told the Chicago Sun-Times, in Spanish, that she reacted Sunday with these words: “Wow. My God.
  
  “No, it can’t be.”

Unfortunately, it was. But guess what the victim's aunt says?

• But the aunt of the 24-year-old woman allegedly raped in the early morning hours of Aug. 15 said the 15-year-old girl might never have been assaulted in December had last summer’s charges against Pantoja stuck.
  
  “The police did their work,” the aunt said. “The problem was the judge that threw the case away.”
  
  The 24-year-old victim and her aunt each spoke to the Sun-Times, in Spanish, on the condition their names wouldn’t be used. Judge Sullivan, meanwhile, did not respond to messages left by the newspaper seeking further explanation for her ruling.

And of course, the judge isn't answering questions and probably won't be forced to because there is no mechanism in place for judicial review in Illinois. We've stated it here and elsewhere, the Cook County judicial system is broken, before and since Greylord and Gambat. There is barely a qualified or uncorrupted judge sitting on the bench today, and if you don't believe that, you haven't been paying attention for the past 50 years.

We have advocated for years that people should vote "NO" across the board on judicial retention ballots, yet only one judge has ever been removed via a vote and that was with Mike Royko's assistance 30+ years ago. People act surprised when we point out instance after instance after instance of criminals roaming the streets who ought to be held on bail, serving time or be anywhere except where they are committing crimes again and again.

And once again, an innocent pays the price.

Rahm Loses Another Court Case

Costing Chicago taxpayers how many hundreds-thousands? And he's going to appeal it again?

• In a win for gun dealers, a federal judge has declared unconstitutional Chicago’s ban on the sale of handguns within the city limits.
  
  U.S. District Court Judge Edmond E. Chang wrote in a 35-page opinion that “Chicago’s ordinance goes too far in outright banning legal buyers and legal dealers from engaging in lawful acquisitions and lawful sales of firearms . . .”
  
  Chang stayed his judgment until the city can file a motion to argue that the judgment should be delayed until the appeals process is completed.
  
  City of Chicago attorneys argued that it needed to ban the sale of handguns within the city because it wanted to restrict criminals’ access to licensed dealers; restrict gun acquisition in the illegal market; and eliminate gun shops, which are dangerous in themselves and cannot be properly regulated.

Hilariously, the judge pointed out that the City's own brief showed that criminals seldom ever buy a gun legally:

• According to a survey of convicted felons proffered by the City itself "[l]egitimate firearms retailers play a minor and unimportant role as direct sources of the criminal handgun supply." ... Indeed only 16% of the 939 inmates surveyed ever acquired a handgun via a straightforward cash transaction at a retail dealer.

Criminals get their guns via criminal actions, not legitimate dealers. Yet Rahm and the left-wing continue to spend millions in an effort to create a provably false image of retail outlets being some fountain of illegal guns, when any educated person knows that it's Eric Holder and the ATF running guns to drug cartels. Oops, did we say that part out loud again?

Concealed Carry Permits

You might have a spouse or relative who could benefit from carrying a concealed weapon.

• APPLY HERE via the ISP website

It appears to be a user-friendly website with most of the pertinent questions answered easily. It also seems to work much better than any ObamaCare website we've heard of.

Now if only the Department would get off their asses and come up with some actual training for officers, that would be nice.

CSA Suspect Released Months Ago

First up, well done to everyone who worked this case. The Detectives working countless hours and beating the bushes. The ET's recovering evidence, including a wrapper with the suspect's DNA on it, the cops responding and securing the scene. A fantastic team effort. This guy is a career criminal with quite the history behind him:

• A man arrested for sexual assault last summer but released by a judge has been charged with the brutal rape of a 15-year-old girl as she was on her way to school in the Belmont Cragin neighborhood on the Northwest Side, authorities said.
  
  A law enforcement source said detectives were led to Luis Alberto Pantoja, 25, through DNA collected from a condom wrapper recovered from near the backyard where the girl was attacked just before dawn on Dec. 17.
  
  
• Pantoja has a long criminal record dating back to 2005, with arrests and charges for theft, possession of a stolen motor vehicle, domestic battery after an order of protection was filed, trespassing, possession of cannabis, failure to report an accident involving death/reckless homicide, leaving the scene of accident, and eluding police.

This however, disturbs us:

• In August of 2013, Pantoja was arrested for criminal sexual assault. On Aug. 29, a public defender was appointed and appeared before Judge Maria Kuriakos Ciesil, who set bail of $200,000.
  
  On Pantoja's next court date Sept. 17, Judge Laura Marie Sullivan dismissed the charge on a finding of no probable cause, records show. Details were not available.

Details better become available pretty quick. Probable Cause is kind of an important standard in CSA cases. In fact, with the Felony Review system, an Assistant States Attorney is intimately involved with deciding whether of not a case goes forward or gets shunted off to "continuing investigations." In many cases (and the Detectives can tell you all about it), a case is pretty much tried in the Detective Area before the 101's get typed up and sent to court with the prisoner. Probable Cause is almost a foregone conclusion at that point. This judge found none to go on, setting this animal free to commit a particularly brutal assault on a 15-year-old girl?

Someone needs to be held accountable for this. Quickly.

DSS Grievance

If anyone keeps track of the General Orders, especially during Exam time, the Department amended one about the District Operations, Field Lieutenant, DSS and Operational Lieutenant Duties. We still don't know why they got rid of the Desk Sergeant (and all acting Desk Sergeants), but now the Department appears to be eliminating the Lieutenant rank and the meaning behind it. The Sergeants are again grieving the out-of-grade provision:

• OT: Sergeants' association filed a grievance about the new DSS order. Sergeants received an email from Ade. Ade mentioned how sergeants won the DSS acting of out-of-grade grievance and the city is attempting to circumvent that decision. One would think the fact that our contract recently passed city council and the changes was never mentioned during negotiations would also be an issue.
  
  How does the city negotiate a contract for a year, then even before the new contract takes effect, changes the roles and responsibilities of a sergeant? Why does any union sit at the table with the city?
  
  If it ain't broke don't fix it. Everything was fine before the idiots started changing our department. Never should have changed the desk sgt and watch commander positions! Since that was done we have had nothing but problems. New sergeants have no experience to guide them, what a shame.

We got an e-mail from someone on the Lieutenants Board of Directors. It seems Gulliford admitted during a recent meeting that the only reason for this changing of the Sergeant duties is that Rahm is pissed the Sergeants dared to win their grievance and ordered that no one is to ever receive out-of-grade pay again. That includes acting Desk Sergeants, acting FTO's (hence the order detailing unattended PPO's to Sergeants and Desks) and ET's (no more crime lab pay). Lieutenants already lost their out-of-grade opportunities and Captains (XO's) don't get anything for acting up as Commanders anymore.

At the meeting, it was also revealed that every exempt there agreed that this was a bunch of bullshit, but no one wanted to buck Rahm and McJerseyShore, so they're eating it. The feeling was also that the "squad policing" concept is doomed, but no one dares speak up against a program that sucked so bad, New York discontinued it 10 years ago.

Great examples of leadership we got here.

Lewis Kicks Rahm's Ass Again

Up until about 5:30 P.M. yesterday, the CPS administrators and Rahm were keeping the schools open, not to educate, but to babysit.

Most sensible parents had already decided to keep their kids home. Even the University of Chicago Lab School that teaches the mayor's kids had decided to close over the weekend. There was even an article in the Tribune that had Karen Lewis, head of the teachers union, calling for schools to be closed.

As a result, Lewis looked like she was making sense, while Rahm (and Rahm's people) dithered:

• As the region braces for brutal sub-zero cold, Chicago city officials have one brief bit of advice: Stay inside.
  
  “If you can stay indoors, please do so,” Gary Schenkel, executive director for the city’s Office of Emergency Management and Communications, told reporters Sunday. He added: “Everyday activities may not be feasible.”

That was probably the last straw - everyone stay home....except the kids. A brilliant bit of theater that would have left egg all over Rahm, so of course, it had to be done. Nice to see someone is thinking.

Check Your Deferred Comp

Technical glitch may have erased some info:

• Dear SCC,
  
  In a comment posted on the SCC blog someone mentioned that Nationwide, who administers our def comp plan, has lost all of the beneficiary data that was previously submitted. I just checked mine and it's gone. Perhaps a special posting to let the boys and girls know what's going on. It was buried in the comment section so many may have missed it.

Never hurts to double check things regularly. And update it if you've had a significant life change in the last year - marriage, divorce, death, children born, etc.

Comments closed here. Information only.

Chicago Blackhawks - Class Acts

A salute to the Chicago Blackhawks organization for their tribute to one of our own who worked with them for years as a side job:

Thank you. And deepest sympathies to the family of Officer Felix Carrizales

Karma is a Bitch

CBS "reporter" Dave Savini stepped in it last night:

• CBS 2 Chicago investigative reporter Dave Savini was arrested Saturday in Naperville and now faces misdemeanor charges including battery, driving under the influence of alcohol, and endangering the life of a child after he left the scene of a minor traffic accident, officials said.
  
  Savini, who lives in Naperville, was arrested about 12:20 a.m. after a minor accident that took place in the parking lot of Taco Bell at 75th Street and Rickert Drive, Naperville police said.
  
  The driver of the other vehicle told police that he wanted to report the collision to police, but Savini refused, Cmdr. Lou Cammiso said. The driver said Savini pushed him when he took a photograph of Savini's license plate with his phone, Cammiso said.
  
  Naperville Police Sgt. Ken Gettemy said police identified Savini by his vehicle's license plate, and arrested him near the intersection of Saratoga and Plainfield Naperville roads.
  
  Savini had two children under age 18 in the car, hence the endangering charge, Gettemy said. "I can't confirm whether or not either, or both, were his kids," he said.

Golly, a supposedly upstanding reporter driving drunk with children in the car, committing battery and fleeing the scene of an accident. So why do we say "karma is a bitch"? Guess what Savini is famous for?

• Before joining CBS 2 Chiago, Savini worked at WMAQ-TV in Chicago as an investigative reporter (1993-2004). In 2003, Savini won the prestigious Edward R. Murrow award for his series “Code Blue, Code Red,” which investigated law enforcement officials and exposed 250 drunk-driving offenders among Chicago police officers, firefighters and paramedics.

Interesting. These are officers, firefighters and paramedics who have already served their criminal penalties and administrative discipline for their off-duty acts, and as far as we know were never accused of being drunk on-duty, but somehow, this is a media story worthy of an award?

Let's see if SeeBS takes down that part of his bio before tomorrow. As of this posting, a quick Google search reveals none of the local TV or radio stations have a single article up regarding this arrest - it's almost like....like....a code of silence or something.

More Snow, More Cold

Thank goodness it isn't January around these parts. We heard that it can really get cold then:

• A winter snow storm is sweeping across the Chicago area and up to a foot of snow could fall in the next 24 hours, causing headaches and hassles at Chicago's airports, with hundreds of cancellations and delays across the board.
  
  Winter loosened its icy grip a bit Saturday as temperatures were rising to the low 30s. But the reprieve will be brief.
  
  After some freeing drizzle, six to 10 inches of snow is expected to fall between Saturday afternoon and Sunday evening in Chicago, western and northern suburbs, according to the National Weather Service. The weather service's storm warning will stay in effect until 6 p.m. Sunday.

Wind chills are expected to be somewhere between 40 and 70 below zero.

And you think it was just the streets that were unplowed and unsalted? The city can't even keep the runways clear at the airport:

• A plane slid off the tarmac at O'Hare International Airport Saturday, a Chicago Department of Aviation spokesperson confirmed.
  
  Spirit Airlines flight No. 245 bound for Las Vegas exited a taxiway around 5:45 p.m., officials said.
  
  The plane was set to depart with 145 passengers on board when a wheel slid off the tarmac, according to Chicago Fire Media Affairs.

Chicago seems out of practice dealing with a major snowfall.

Detroit Chief: "Guns Deter Crime"

How can we get this attitude transfered here?

• If more citizens were armed, criminals would think twice about attacking them, Detroit Police Chief James Craig said Thursday.
  
  Urban police chiefs are typically in favor of gun control or reluctant to discuss the issue, but Craig on Thursday was candid about how he’s changed his mind.
  
  “When we look at the good community members who have concealed weapons permits, the likelihood they’ll shoot is based on a lack of confidence in this Police Department,” Craig said at a press conference at police headquarters, adding that he thinks more Detroit citizens feel safer, thanks in part to a 7 percent drop in violent crime in 2013.
  
  Craig said he started believing that legal gun owners can deter crime when he became police chief in Portland, Maine, in 2009.
  
  “Coming from California (Craig was on the Los Angeles police force for 28 years), where it takes an act of Congress to get a concealed weapon permit, I got to Maine, where they give out lots of CCWs (carrying concealed weapon permits), and I had a stack of CCW permits I was denying; that was my orientation.
  
  “I changed my orientation real quick. Maine is one of the safest places in America. Clearly, suspects knew that good Americans were armed.”

Detroit had 333 murders last year - exactly as many as New York - despite having a population around 700,000. Detroit is obviously a dangerous place to live or work.

Chief Craig needs a little "refining" of his views concerning so-called "assault weapons" and standard capacity magazines, but as clear-thinking and advanced as he obviously is concerning the Second Amendment, we imagine it's only a matter of time.