Mayor abruptly fires retiring Chicago Police Chief Johnson

Mayor abruptly fires retiring Chicago Police Chief Johnson

By: Robert Foreman

CHICAGO - Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot abruptly fired retiring Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson over his account of an October incident in which he was found asleep in his car after having drinks at dinner. A call had been placed to 911 on October 17th when Johnson was discovered sleeping in his car at a stop sign. Johnson was allowed to drive himself home when the responding officers determined that he was not impaired. Johnson would go on to tell reporters that he parked his car because he felt his blood pressure rising. He subsequently stated that he had been prescribed new medication for a blood clot, but he had accidentally missed a dose.

“It has become clear that Mr. Johnson engaged in a series of actions that are intolerable for any leader in a position of trust, particularly the head of the Chicago Police Department. Mr. Johnson failed the hardworking members of the Chicago Police Department, he intentionally misled the people of Chicago and he intentionally misled me. None of that is acceptable,” said Mayor Lightfoot at a news conference.

“He was not caught off guard and he had plenty of time to choose his words, and the choice he made was a communicated narrative replete with false statements all seemingly intended to hide the true nature of his conduct the evening before.”

Mayor Lightfoot added that despite her challenging Johnson’s account of events that he maintained that he was telling the truth. The Mayor noted that had she known all of the facts at the time that she would have removed him on the spot. After 30 years with the Chicago Police Department, Johnson announced in November that he would be retiring yet would remain in his job until the end of the year.

Johnson was not given a sobriety test in October and he even requested that the department launch an internal investigation into the matter. At the time, there was no immediate evidence of wrongdoing and Mayor Lightfoot even appeared at the news conference celebrating Johnson’s retirement. Mayor Lightfoot has yet to say what specific piece of information forced her to remove Johnson, but she was not willing to let him go gently into retirement. In a statement, the Chicago police union said that they understood Mayor Lightfoot’s decision and that they appreciated her desire for transparency and accountability. However, the union cautioned people against making any rush to judgement about the ousted chief.

Johnson’s three-year tenure was marked by some high-profile events that included the bogus assault claim made by actor Jussie Smollett and the Laquan McDonald trial. Both events forced Johnson, as well as the Chicago Police Department, into the spotlight. However, Johnson’s primary goal was to tackle the city’s ongoing gun violence. While the department released statistics in October that showed that murders and shootings had declined by 10% since last year those numbers have to be placed in context. Between January and September of 2019, the city experienced 1,633 shootings while recording 1,836 shootings during the same time period in 2018. So, Chicago’s reputation for gun violence, and being the ‘Wild Wild West’, continues to be well-earned.

After his abrupt firing, Johnson released a statement in which he acknowledged that he had made “a poor decision and had a lapse of judgement” in October. He also stressed that he was not going to fight with those who wanted to question his reputation now. At present, his next move is unknown. Until a permanent replacement for Johnson can be found, former LAPD Chief Charlie Beck will serve as the interim chief.