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Two Fraternal Order of Police officials from Clearing shared insights about law enforcement at the state and local level at the Oct. 9 United Business Association of Midway meeting.
Tamara Cummings, general counsel for the Illinois FOP, and John Catanzara, president of the Chicago FOP (Lodge 7)—former classmates at St. Rene School—were the guest speakers at the lunch meeting at Red Barrel restaurant.
Cummings, who is UBAM President Anita Cummings’ daughter, explained that her organization represents law enforcement personnel statewide, not including Chicago and Illinois state troopers.
“Most law enforcement officers in Illinois are in unions. In this climate, you would be crazy not to be,” said Cummings, noting that her organization has about 12,000 members in about 530 units statewide, and 43 full-time employees.
Besides negotiating contracts and filing grievances related to labor violations, she said the state FOP provides a 24-hour hotline for members seeking advice on job-related issues.
“There is always an investigation whenever a police officer fires a weapon. More than 99 percent of the time it is justified,” she said, before turning the floor over to Catanzara.
With Lodge 7 having more than 17,000 active and retired members, the Chicago FOP is the biggest nationwide, Catanzara said.
“We represent everyone below the rank of sergeant,” said the union president, who retired from a 27-year career on the force about two years ago.
“(During my career) my big mouth got me in trouble several times,” said Catanzara, explaining that he sought union leadership because he felt members needed better representation than he received. “If I didn’t, I knew black and brown officers were not getting a fair shake.”
Since being elected president in 2020, Catanzara said issues union members have dealt included the city’s COVID-19 vaccination requirements, and the civil unrest following the police shooting of George Floyd in Minneapolis. He noted that the union fought successfully for line-of-duty benefits for three officers who died of COVID-19.
“Police departments have been vilified across this nation. If you read a headline, don’t believe you have the whole story. Nobody wants to be the police anymore,” said Catanzara. “We are probably short 1,400 officers in the CPD.”
He said Mayor Brandon Johnson’s postponement of two police academy classes due to start in October and November will worsen the problem.
Catanzara pointed to the staffing shortage when a UBAM member asked for his opinion on efforts to split the underserved Chicago Lawn (8th) District in two. Local alderpeople are backing efforts to turn the former National Guard Armory adjacent to Midway Airport at 5400 W. 63rd St. into a new police station.
“It is not feasible. Where are the officers going to come from to staff it? It is a tale as old as time. I don’t think creating a new district is going to change anything,” said Catanzara, adding that the location of the Armory at Midway Airport is also problematic.
“Everybody assumes it is going to happen overnight. It will be over four or five years if it happens,” said Clearing resident Marie Zilka.
Catanzara said that while Chicago police are taking 12,000 illegal guns off the streets annually, voters and parents of juveniles committing crimes need to do more.
“There is not a safe corner in this city,” he said, recalling the 8th District “was like Mayberry” when he started his career there in 1995. “If we don’t start taking our city back, I don’t know what it is going to be like. A 25-percent voter turnout isn’t good enough. Sitting in a corner silent is not an option.”
Catanzara faulted former Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Mayor Johnson for not supporting law enforcement, citing Johnson’s recent decision to cancel the ShotSpotter program. But he expressed optimism about current police Supt. Larry Snelling, as well as the new Community Commission for Public Safety and Accountability.
“Snelling definitely was the best choice. And morale has improved,” he said. “It’s a work in progress. He is not a shrinking violet.”
He credited Snelling for handling the Democratic Party convention in August, although he said a lower-than-expected number of protesters helped, too. “I am grateful we have a partnership with the CCPSA,” said Catanzana, admitting he was initially skeptical of it.
“Their president Anthony Driver and an attorney reached out and asked for a sit-down with us. They wanted to hear what we had to say, and 200 officers at a membership meeting did not hold back. They kind of embraced everything we were saying,” said Catanzana.
He pointed out the approaching 10th anniversary of the shooting of Laquan McDonald in the 8th District on Oct. 20, 2014.
“That was the impetus for the police reform movement,” said Catanzana. Former police officer Jason Van Dyke was convicted in that case. The FOP did not defend him after seeing the video.
“As police officers, we tend to give the benefit of the doubt to a fellow officer, but when the offender is falling on the ground and lying on the ground and you are still putting bullets in him, that is wrong, and we have to say it is wrong,” said Catanzara.
“In that case, I understood where the other side was coming from. (Since then) we have made an extreme outreach to the minority community.”
“I am trying to incrementally to take this union in a direction I think it needs to go. We can’t be saying that police don’t do anything wrong.”