If there’s a city in America that can’t afford to fire half its police officers, that would be Chicago. Yet here we are. Nearly half of Chicago’s 13,000 sworn cops have declined to share their personal health history regarding vaccinations with the City of Chicago by last Friday’s deadline. Now, they face termination by the corrupt city’s hapless government.
As if firing nearly half of the force’s cops isn’t bad enough, the remaining officers now have been forbidden from taking time off for any reason.
Doesn’t that sound like America’s employer of the year?
The nation’s largest open-air shooting range, otherwise known as Chicago, has chalked up 684 homicides to date under the “leadership” of Democrat Mayor Lori Lightfoot. That represents more homicides than 46 states had for the all of 2019.
Cook County’s soft-on-crime State’s Attorney Kim Foxx (brought to residents by $2 million of George Soros’ money) bears plenty of responsibility for the spiraling violent crime as well, failing to charge violent felons who spray bullets through neighborhoods and calling it “mutual combat.” It won’t surprise most able-minded folks that one-third of known murder assailants were out on “affordable bail” for other felony arrests.
Meanwhile, this latest battle between Chi-town and its police union continues to heat up. Before a judge yanked the Chicago Fraternal Order of Police Lodge President’s right to free speech, John Catanzaro told his officers to follow their conscience on the matter.
But now the dispute has gone international with the UK Daily Mail picking up the story:
Chicago’s police chief is threatening to fire officers who don’t comply with the city’s COVID-19 vaccination police and warned their retirement benefits could also be yanked.
In a memo sent Sunday night, Chicago Police Superintendent David Brown said that those officers who do choose to retire rather than comply “may be denied retirement credentials,” the Chicago Tribune reported.
Chicago is restricting cops from taking time off as the city prepares to ax up to half of its 13,000 officers who are yet to declare their Covid-19 vaccination status.
In a memo issued by the city’s police department a day after officers were required to disclose their vaccine status, officers were informed elective time off will be restricted, according to WLS.
‘Until further notice, the use of elective time by sworn CPD members is restricted,’ the memo obtained by the local network said.
‘Furthermore, the use of elective time will require prior approval from the Deputy chief or above within the requesting member’s chain of command.’
As for those cops eligible to retire who don’t want to get the vaccine, the city is threatening to withhold retirement credentials. While that doesn’t sound like much, those credentials allow them to carry a firearm for the rest of their lives under LEOSA or HR-218.
Regardless, if the Democrat Mayor Lori Lightfoot does indeed follow through and fires half of the police department, imagine the chaos that will likely erupt. In the meantime, those who haven’t yet availed themselves to firearm ownership in Illinois are likely out of luck.
After all, in the Land of Lincoln, a person needs a Firearm Owner ID card to even touch a gun, much less buy one. The good news is that Illinois State Police will likely issue a new card within 30 days to a new applicant. Even if they have a FOID card, they will need to wait three days to take their new purchase home with them.