Crime & Law
Chicago Police Officer Who Threatened to Kill Romantic Partner and Their Family Won’t Be Fired: Watchdog
A Chicago police officer who threatened to kill a former romantic partner and their family after their relationship ended will not be fired by city officials, according to a report released Friday by the city’s watchdog.
Instead, the officer, who was not identified in the report released by Inspector General Deborah Witzburg in keeping with the city’s rules, was suspended for two months, according to the watchdog’s quarterly report.
Representatives of the Chicago Police Department declined to answer questions from WTTW News about why police officials did not seek the officer’s termination even after the probe conducted by the Office of the Inspector General documented the threats and urged the officer’s firing.
The inspector general’s probe found that while the officer’s former partner was moving out of the apartment they shared, the officer “told them to call everyone they loved and tell them goodbye” and told them they were going to kill them and their family if they appeared at the apartment later that same day.
The officer’s former partner called 911, and when officers arrived they discovered the officer “failed to adequately secure their firearm and failed to provide their current address to CPD,” in violation of department rules.
The inspector general urged department officials to fire the officer for violating six departmental rules and regulations, including Rule 1, which prohibits “violation of any law or ordinance.”
The officer also violated rules that prohibit officers from preventing CPD “efforts to achieve its policy and goals or brings discredit” upon the department and requires them to obey their superiors’ orders, according to the inspector general’s report.
However, CPD officials rejected the inspector general’s finding that the officer had violated Rule 1, because they were not convicted of a criminal offense. It is unclear whether the officer was criminally charged in connection with this matter.
The inspector general disagreed with that conclusion, citing a litany of court cases dating back to 1996.
Instead of following the inspector general’s recommendation that the officer CPD be terminated, police brass “concluded that a suspension of 60 days was the appropriate penalty for the police officer.”
Contact Heather Cherone: @HeatherCherone | (773) 569-1863 | [email protected]