December 23, 2008
Chicago News Department
The Mos Eisley of the Blogosphere: a Tribute to the Chicago Cops Over at Blogspot
Honest, I really wanted to like these guys. After all, in a little corner of their blog they proudly proclaim (albeit in small letters):
But, well . . . take a look for yourself; lots of the posts are, well, problematical, although some are kind of interesting -- see if you can find the very, very clever link where the blog author explains to his fellow badged set how to do as little work as possible without technically engaging in the sort of job action that is one of the very few things that can actually get a Chicago cop fired.
But, largely, it's a pretty good illustration of how bad a badged culture of corruption, cronyism, and entitlement can get.
One of the things that has the little guys' tactical knickers in a twist of late is this, and it's pretty typical.
Before we go all Rashomon, let's cover what happened: back in 2002, when a black guy named Crispus Booker was sitting on his porch in Chicago, he laughed at a couple of white cops who were at the time unsuccessfully chasing a suspect. When they, naturally, went to arrest him for that lese majeste --
Yeah. He laughed, and shoved a cop, and got shot in the hand while trying to escape. It'sChinatown Chicago.
But the day wasn't over, for either of them.
Now, there's some argument about what happened after.
Booker's claim is that he was lying on the ground with his hands raised when Livergood shot him again; CPD spokesman Tommy Flanagan later explained that Booker was trying to grab Livergood's gun when Livergood shot him, and that Flanagan's wife, Morgan Fairchild, yeah, that's the ticket, was a witness. (Okay, okay, yeah, I'm making part of that up. But the Chicago PD did rule that he was trying to grab Livergood's gun when Livergood shot him. After all, Livergood said so.)
Livergood and his partner also claim to have found two-count-'em-two guns that Booker supposedly tossed as he ran.
But there's really no question that the second bullet, "traveled through Booker's lungs and liver and lodged near his spine, nor that he "lost about 40 percent of his blood and spent a month in the hospital."
Nor, for that matter, is there any question that both Livergood and his partner were, at the time of the shooting, members of the CPD's "Special Operations Section", a unit that was -- even for the scandal-plagued Chicago PD -- so notoriously corrupt that it eventually had to be disbanded. (We're not talking about just a little testilying, mind you, or the occasional flaking of a known drug dealer to avoid the occasional hard work of actually catching the drug dealer "dirty" while the cops obey the law, but routine "creative writing" and a nasty habit of conducting searches that turned up nothing except the savings that disappeared into badged thugs' pockets.)
Getting back to what's not in dispute: on one hand, Booker -- who has a record for some pretty serious naughtinesses -- was awarded $720,000 in damages.
And the commentators over at Second City Cop are furious.
At the SOS cops who tried to arrest a guy for laughing at them?
Let's not be silly. Of course not.
At the SOS cop who shot a guy who he'd try to arrest for laughing at him for running away?
Well, no.
At the possibility that the ADA in charge of the case might have been worried that two cops from the notoriously corrupt SOS might have planted a couple of "drop guns", which might have explained to them why Booker was only charged with the shove, not with the gun charges?
Nah.
At the SOS cops for trying to sell a pretty strange story -- a guy, sitting on his porch watching two cops wheeze after somebody they're chasing, draws attention to himself, attention from cops in a famously thuggish department, while he's got a couple of guns hidden on his person -- and expecting everybody to buy it?
Nah.
But they are mad: at everybody else, particularly Chicago Police Superintendent Jody Weis, largely because he wasn't "from around here". (He's an ex-FBI, guy, known to the denizens of SCC as "J-Fed.")
Read the comments; I don't have the heart to quote most of them.
Although one of the SCC crowd makes it clear what he thought the only mistake Livergood made was. No, it wasn't trying to arrest a guy for laughing at him; no, not maybe planting a couple of guns or shooting a guy on the ground with his hands up.
Nah.
*sound of crickets*
Like I say, Second City Cop is the Mos Eisley of the blogosphere; a more wretched hive of scum and villainy will be hard to find.
And it's everybody else's fault.
When seconds count, the Police are only minutes away. (SCC supports Concealed Carry)Warms me boyish heart, it does. Then again, it would.
But, well . . . take a look for yourself; lots of the posts are, well, problematical, although some are kind of interesting -- see if you can find the very, very clever link where the blog author explains to his fellow badged set how to do as little work as possible without technically engaging in the sort of job action that is one of the very few things that can actually get a Chicago cop fired.
But, largely, it's a pretty good illustration of how bad a badged culture of corruption, cronyism, and entitlement can get.
One of the things that has the little guys' tactical knickers in a twist of late is this, and it's pretty typical.
Before we go all Rashomon, let's cover what happened: back in 2002, when a black guy named Crispus Booker was sitting on his porch in Chicago, he laughed at a couple of white cops who were at the time unsuccessfully chasing a suspect. When they, naturally, went to arrest him for that lese majeste --
Yeah. We'll get to that.-- he shoved one and ran. While his partner scooted around the corner to block the laugher's escape route, the shovee, George Livergood, chased Booker -- apparently the original guest of honor of the chase was of less interest, after the laughing -- and shot him in the hand.
Yeah. He laughed, and shoved a cop, and got shot in the hand while trying to escape. It's
But the day wasn't over, for either of them.
Now, there's some argument about what happened after.
Booker's claim is that he was lying on the ground with his hands raised when Livergood shot him again; CPD spokesman Tommy Flanagan later explained that Booker was trying to grab Livergood's gun when Livergood shot him, and that Flanagan's wife, Morgan Fairchild, yeah, that's the ticket, was a witness. (Okay, okay, yeah, I'm making part of that up. But the Chicago PD did rule that he was trying to grab Livergood's gun when Livergood shot him. After all, Livergood said so.)
Livergood and his partner also claim to have found two-count-'em-two guns that Booker supposedly tossed as he ran.
But there's really no question that the second bullet, "traveled through Booker's lungs and liver and lodged near his spine, nor that he "lost about 40 percent of his blood and spent a month in the hospital."
Nor, for that matter, is there any question that both Livergood and his partner were, at the time of the shooting, members of the CPD's "Special Operations Section", a unit that was -- even for the scandal-plagued Chicago PD -- so notoriously corrupt that it eventually had to be disbanded. (We're not talking about just a little testilying, mind you, or the occasional flaking of a known drug dealer to avoid the occasional hard work of actually catching the drug dealer "dirty" while the cops obey the law, but routine "creative writing" and a nasty habit of conducting searches that turned up nothing except the savings that disappeared into badged thugs' pockets.)
Getting back to what's not in dispute: on one hand, Booker -- who has a record for some pretty serious naughtinesses -- was awarded $720,000 in damages.
And the commentators over at Second City Cop are furious.
At the SOS cops who tried to arrest a guy for laughing at them?
Let's not be silly. Of course not.
At the SOS cop who shot a guy who he'd try to arrest for laughing at him for running away?
Well, no.
At the possibility that the ADA in charge of the case might have been worried that two cops from the notoriously corrupt SOS might have planted a couple of "drop guns", which might have explained to them why Booker was only charged with the shove, not with the gun charges?
Nah.
At the SOS cops for trying to sell a pretty strange story -- a guy, sitting on his porch watching two cops wheeze after somebody they're chasing, draws attention to himself, attention from cops in a famously thuggish department, while he's got a couple of guns hidden on his person -- and expecting everybody to buy it?
Nah.
But they are mad: at everybody else, particularly Chicago Police Superintendent Jody Weis, largely because he wasn't "from around here". (He's an ex-FBI, guy, known to the denizens of SCC as "J-Fed.")
Read the comments; I don't have the heart to quote most of them.
Although one of the SCC crowd makes it clear what he thought the only mistake Livergood made was. No, it wasn't trying to arrest a guy for laughing at him; no, not maybe planting a couple of guns or shooting a guy on the ground with his hands up.
Nah.
Rule #1:I will now print, in total, the number of responses of horror and shame that somebody suggesting he is a Chicago cop would post such a thing:
Shoot to kill. Once it is determined that you are lawfully allowed to shoot somebody, it doesn't matter if you shoot him once or 60 times. Dead man tells no bullshit tales.
Rule #2:
Make sure you follow rule #1!
None of my kills ever collect a nickle from this city or lived to testify against me in a civil trial.
*sound of crickets*
Like I say, Second City Cop is the Mos Eisley of the blogosphere; a more wretched hive of scum and villainy will be hard to find.
And it's everybody else's fault.
8 Comments
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Hey, all you members of the Chicago law enforcement community! This bastard Joel is saying bad things about you! Let's get him!
Man, if he didn't live SO FAR AWAY, I'd go up there and kick his ass, just for insulting Chicago's finest that way. Unfortunately, I LIVE HERE IN CHICAGO, just like you good men and women, who are always so smart and attractive and forgiving, otherwise I'd teach him a thing or two, I would.
Sorry about that. Good help is hard to find.
Have a Merry Christmas! See you at the next CAPS meeting!
essagemay to oeljay: Live here I do. Ixnay on the umscay and illainyvay.
When you come across such incidents, the first feeling that comes to my mind is that of anger and frustration. How can one in fit of rage shoot an innocent civilian! This is not expected from a Cop who is actually the protector of the law and order situation in a civil society.
I wouldn't be so quick to generalize about "anonymous" comments on SCC, Mr. Rosenberg.
At best, it's anecdotal. At worst, it's the drivel of an imposter.
Fair enough; but there's also a fair number of other anecdotes -- there and elsewhere -- that one could point to, showing pretty bad behavior, that aren't quite as easy to dismiss. Remember the cordon to screen Anthony Abbatte during his perp walk, and the threats to reporters?
But you're quite right. I don't know for a fact that the blog owner, himself (or, theoretically, herself) is in fact a Chicago cop.
Frankly, the "none of my kills" line makes me think that post was pure BS. Who really talks like that?
Frankly, the "none of my kills" line makes me think that post was pure BS. Who really talks like that?
Well, let me tell'ya man. Our own X-mayor here in Niagara Falls (who was an X-cop) actually said the following....There was a incident where a mental patient escaped from the city psyche ward. We was naked but wearing a hospital backless gown thingy, and armed with a deadly butter knife (made of plastic BTW) A cop shot (from 20+ feet away) him several times and killed him. When asked why they didn't try & wound him, in a rather snide, tuff-guy manner the Mayor proudly exclaimed "Our cops don't shoot to wound, they shoot to kill". This isn't exactly like the comment your referring to, but...it is kinda in the same ball park I think.
Yeah, but look who's talking. The tough-talking mayor said it, but not the guy who actually did the shooting. So who really talks like that? Not anybody who's actually killed someone. At least not in my (admittedly limited) experience.
It would appear that the site isn't as much of an exaggeration as it first seemed.
http://www.popehat.com/2009/01/26/what-distinguishes-a-rogue-cop-from-a-good-policeman/