Chicago’s top cop says city ready for summer events, Democratic National Convention
CHICAGO — The city’s top cop on Wednesday told aldermen that he’s being strategic about deployments and relying on community violence intervention groups to keep Chicagoans safe this summer.
Supt. Larry Snelling’s department is gearing up for several major events, including Lollapalooza, the NASCAR street race, Pitchfork and what is perhaps the biggest security challenge: the Democratic National Convention.
“We will not tolerate violence, we will not tolerate destruction. But what we will do is protect everybody’s First Amendment right,” Snelling told members of the public safety committee.
Alders questioned Snelling about how he plans to balance the need to secure the DNC verses keeping the neighborhoods safe.
“What we can guarantee you is that we do have a focus on what’s happening in the neighborhoods because we understand that the DNC is not the only show in town,” he said.
ShotSpotter also came up. CPD is out with statistics showing that over the last six years police response times were more than two minutes quicker with a ShotSpotter alert.
City extends ShotSpotter contract through Sept. 2024
Council members who want the city to keep the tech hope the stats help convince Mayor Brandon Johnson to reverse his decision to wind down operations this fall.
“The technology has allowed us to get to jobs quicker,” he said.
To handle the busy summer months, the department is using a familiar tactic: blackouts on certain weeks when officers can’t use vacation. Days off will also be canceled.
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