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Lawless in Chicago
I see the streets as they are, not as I wish they were. A street cop stands on the lowest rung of the law enforcement ladder. At the top of the ladder, in the rarified air of city politics, policing requires complying with the demands of social engineering. Social engineering demands that come from the Feds, city hall, judges, and in Chicago, the State Attorneys Office. In Chicago those that stand on the highest rung suffer from a lack of oxygen, hypoxia – mental confusion, and numbness.
The Smollett case aside, a case that involves influence peddling for an entitled, self-absorbed dumba**, the more important stats are:
Year to Date
Shot & Killed: 67
Shot & Wounded: 326
Total Shot: 393
Total Homicides: 75
This is an essay about one homicide out of the 75 in the Windy City.
On March 8th, Menelik Jackson was standing in front of Cook County Judge Joseph Claps to address a violation of probation motion that prosecutors had filed against the 24-year-old South Sider.
After pleading guilty to attempted burglary last August, Jackson was ordered to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet and to observe a 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. curfew for six months. But, prosecutors say Jackson violated those terms by allowing his monitoring system’s batteries to drain out last month.
Jackson had nothing to worry about. Judge Claps would be treating him with the same kid gloves that Jackson had grown accustomed to enjoying in the Cook County justice system. Rather than punish Jackson for violating the terms of probation—rather than extending the monitoring and curfew period or sending Jackson to jail or prison—Claps ordered the curfew and monitoring to be terminated immediately. There would be no punishment for Jackson’s failure to live up to his probation terms.
Mr. Jackson was on probation for domestic violence.
On March 16, 2017, Jackson’s live-in girlfriend showed police officers bruises on her face and neck. Jackson had grabbed her by the throat and punched her in the head, she said. She took officers to a bedroom where the couple’s 16-day-old child was sleeping. Jackson had placed a loaded 9-millimeter handgun on the bed directly next to the child with the barrel pointing at the unattended newborn. A protective order was issued, barring Jackson from contacting the victims and from possessing any firearms.
Less than four months later, on July 3rd, 2017, the bad situation turned worse.
Armed with a handgun that he was prohibited from having, Jackson broke into his ex-girlfriend’s home where he had been ordered not to go. He brandished the gun and threatened to kill both the woman and the couple’s now-four-month-old child, in blatant violation of the court’s no-contact order.
Afterward, the woman called police and told them where they could find Jackson: He had an appointment that morning for pre-hiring screening at the Chicago Police Academy. Officers arrested him there in possession of a loaded handgun.
Jackson was charged with one of the state’s most serious crimes, Class X felony home invasion while armed with a firearm. Other felony charges filed included residential burglary, aggravated unlawful use of a weapon in a vehicle, and aggravated unlawful use of a weapon in violation of a protective order.
Mr. Jackson could not raise the bail money he needed to get out of jail so he was offered a plea deal in August of 2017. He would plead guilty to the charges in the first incident, and charges in the second incident would be dropped. All gun charges would also be dropped. The State presented the plea deal in court and was accepted by Judge Ursula Walowski.
Walowski sentenced Jackson to 30 months of “intensive probation,” fined him $500, ordered him to submit a DNA sample, and issued a protective order that barred him from having a gun and from contacting his victims. Again. She ordered Jackson to perform 30 hours of community service and wrote that he “shall be on GPS monitor and curfew from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m. for [the] first six months.” Two of Jackson’s guns in the police department’s possession were ordered destroyed.
Despite being handed the great gift of serving no prison time and enjoying the leniency of a prosecutor who dropped a cakewalk armed home invasion case in favor of a single, reduced charge of “attempted” burglary, Jackson still wouldn’t play by the rules.
On March 23, 2019 an off duty Chicago police officer is shot and killed by Menelik Jackson.
Then, on March 8th, Jackson again enjoyed the kind hand of Cook County “justice” as Judge Claps decided not to penalize him for breaking probation promises. Jackson’s electronic monitor was removed. His curfew was terminated.
Two weeks later, Jackson and an as-yet-unnamed companion were at the Rock & Roll McDonald’s in River North at 2:30 a.m. on March 23rd. Somehow, Jackson and his friend got into a dispute with a busload of about 10 Hispanic partiers. Police were called. The situation was resolved.
But Jackson wasn’t done, prosecutors say.
He left the McDonald’s and got another handgun that he was not allowed to have. Then, Jackson and the man who is still being sought by police began looking for the group of Hispanic partiers, according to allegations. Jackson and the other offender bumped into frequently-arrested local vagrant Jovan Battle and asked if he had seen the Hispanic group. Battle—who some police sources say was paid $5 by Jackson for his guidance—gestured with a bottle toward Officer John P. Rivera’s car where the off-duty cop, his girlfriend, another off-duty officer, and a male friend had settled in for their drive home.
Jackson walked up to the driver’s side of Rivera’s car and began firing without saying a word.
Rivera and his group had not been at the Rock & Roll McDonald’s. They had never encountered Jackson or his friend before. Instead, they had merely walked out of nearby Stout Barrel House and prepared to return home.
CPD Supt. Eddie Johnson today said Rivera was killed because he was “the first Hispanic man” Jackson saw after returning to River North….With that gun that he promised the court he wouldn’t have.
Officer Rivera and other homicide victims have died for Chicago’s misplaced values, and virtue merchant’s. May they all rest in peace.
Postscript
The Chicago Police Department released documents on the Smollett Case this morning. The State Attorneys Office obtained a court order to stop any further releases. This may be an opening salvo in a war between the CPD and the State Attorneys Office.
Published in Policing
I’m sure there must be some redeeming aspects to being a Chicago resident. I’m just not coming up with any right now.
This type of problem is not entirely unique to Chicago. States that have adopted sanctuary city, or sanctuary state policies have put their citizens at risk. Politicizing law enforcement leads to more than shoulder strain for virtue merchant’s that pat themselves on the back for doing the feel-good “right thing”.
Maybe the judges are all craven cowards, on the other hand, probably not enough government money to provide good security.
These judges should have to live amongst the vermin they allow to get away with this crap.
No wonder felons have contempt for the law. If I lived in Chicago, I would also have contempt for those responsible for enforcing the law.
It seems the Jussie Smollett case is not an aberration.
Who is going to enforce that order?
Is that any more important than an order not to have contact with a victim, not to carry a gun, or keeping your ankle bracelet charged?
The State Attorney’s Office and the CPD are always at war.
EDIT: And the folks who invented “wood shampoo” have come out of the corner swinging.
The Smollett case is actually an interesting Rorschach test for liberals, and looks to be dividing them into the rich/pop culture elite and special interest activists vs. everybody else, including the mayor of Chicago, the chief of police and most of the Chicago-area media. The elites and the activists see the case as more of a political weapon, where the ability to toss around accusations of racism, homophobia and the idea that some neo-fascist right-wing state, as they try to keep alive the idea that MAGA-wearing Trump supporters picked the coldest night in a quarter century to ambush Smollett, is plausible.
It’s the “Never let a good crisis go to waste” mindset, even if you have to create the crisis yourself, versus the guy who coined the phrase, who doesn’t like the idea of a good crisis being fabricated and used to embarrass him. And most people, including liberals outside of the privileged class who’d actually like to see the police probing real cases, are on Emanuel’s side here (The TMZ story today on the situation on the set of “Empire” sort of goes to the divide — the show’s woke writing staff is all with Jussie, but the other crew members don’t want to buy into The Cause in the name of intersectionality, and don’t want him back on the show, no matter what the attorney’s office in Chicago may think of the charges).
I’m so sorry, Doug.
Maybe we have an under-incarceration problem?!?
The Smollett case demonstrates that is really coastal elites vs. the rest of us. If he was corruptly let off and then went away quietly it would be bad, but to be left off and then run to the camera’s saying he was speaking truth the whole time is complete offensive to the CPD and all the people of “MAGA Country”. It is fair that the CPD have released files to “try this case” in the court of public opinion.
Smollett’s actions is second to the offensive acts by Bobby O’Rourke, who while contrite about his DUI, blamed his getting off on “white privilege”. No Beto! You got off because your dad was a judge and you are an elite, so stop throwing all poor white people under the bus.
But the injustice doesn’t stop there. The scumbag that hacked the Senate computer network, took tons of data, doxxed some Republicans, and attempted extortion against a member of Congress will not be punished. It seems that Jackson Cosko is a scion of a wealthy family with great political connections in San Francisco (the power center of West Coast). He deserves life in a federal prison, but details of his plea deal are still secret. Another coastal elite walks.
Add in that Mueller spent 2 years investigating “Russian collusion” and didn’t manage too even look at Bill and Hillary stuffing their pockets with Russian cash. Rank has its privileges.
So, keeping score for the last week: Elites 4, justice 0.
The solution to all of this is quite simple – take every gun in the country and destroy them…
<snark off>
The link is to a blog created by a small group upset at under/misreporting of crime in their neighborhoods. CWB Chicago got an “Exclusive: Chicago Police Department’s complete investigative file of Jussie Smollett case.” This was because the mayor, police chief, and whole police department were furious at the Crooked County deal likely brokered by Michelle Obama’s fixer, so they immediately responded to the CWB Chicago request before a crooked judge could order all records destroyed.
Chicago’s ABC affiliate is also doing real reporting: “Jussie Smollett update: FBI reviewing circumstances of Jussie Smollett’s charges being dropped, sources confirm.” It is a must read, complete with screenshots from Cook County prosecutors trying to find some evidence to back up the extremely unlikely claim that defendants get the Smollett all the time.
So I saw this article via Instapundit right before clicking in to Ricochet today:
(Chicago Tribune)
Column:
On the West Side, the street shows no fear of Chicago police
Once again I clicked the so-called, “like” button, when it’s so clear that we need a button that says, “I’m glad you posted this, but it is so disgusting that the last think I want to imply is that I ‘like’ any part of it.”
Conflict between the police and the prosecutors could make it difficult for either of them to do their jobs, which would be bad news for the citizenry.
This is a real problem (well, first world, low down the list type). I also want to say something like “indeed” and often do when “like” just doesn’t feel right. As much as I have a hate-hate relationship with Facebook, their move to multiple reaction icons was nice. This is a place for the angry emoticon. Others that have been suggested for Ricochet in the past include “Oy,” which is a good one, though not quite right here. “Yuck” would be good, too.
Excellent points made in your essay.
As far as your Postscript, it appears that city officials in Chicago may be making a demand on Mr Smollett that he re-pay the $ 135K that the city spent investigating the MAGA hat brigade hoax.
And some National Association of Lawyers or Attorneys has taken MS Foxx to task as well. She recused herself, but apparently then reached out to Smollett’s family during her recusal? And then she decided to make the statement reflecting the final ruling that the Smollett case was over and that without the matter going to court, he needed only to offer up the 10K bond and his 18 hours of community service.