Area Soldier Killed In Fort Hood Rampage
Stroger Makes Hollywood Play
Put Down Your Nanowrimo And Leave The House
Sox Shuffle Continues
Jody Weis wants Chicago cops to drive SUVs instead of what he called the "horrible" fleet of cars they current drive.
Weis also said he'd like to get officers better flashlights and radios, and standardize their weapons. The wish-list was part of a speech he gave this afternoon at the Chicago Crime Commission luncheon. From the Trib:
...Weis noted that making any of these changes would cost money, and the city budget crunch might make it difficult to outfit an entire department with new uniform weapons or new SUVs.
Dare to dream, J-Fed! [Trib, photo by Pantagrapher]
add to stumble upon
add to reddit
tweet this
post to facebook
Why? Do cops have to drive their kids to soccer practice while on duty? Maybe get some groceries?
You have to understand the need for the CPD to navigate snowy streets with ease in order to beat ass more efficiently.
1) Were in a f-in recession, (yes we are). Stop spending money on shiny objects.
2) I thought this guy was all gun-ho about fitness. Get the cops out or their cars, and back into the neighborhoods, walking their beats.
walk their beats? this isn't 1908. with the exception of downtown, cops need their vehicles.
So, the mayor wants to "green" the city and his police chief wants SUV's? What's wrong with this picture.
The last thing we need in an already overly congested city is more gas-guzzling, road-hogging SUV's.
Yo angry Waiter, why you hate'n on a Five-O riding dirty in an SUVs?
I say Five-O in SUV's with CPD issued double rivers double flip back gold rims, son!
And rocking new CPD issued Timbos, especially the New felony Art Crimes anti Graffiti deep cover unit!
No, this is not 1908, but I think more beat cops are a great idea. I am not saying it works in every neighborhood, but it does work beyond downtown. There is a beat cop in my neighborhood of Linclon Square. He stops in at the bars in the evenings to see how things are going, knows people by name, and is friendly. I wish there were more beat cops in neighborhoods--I think they help bring a sense of community to the area. Then again, that probably depends on the neighborhood.
Beat cops and Community Policing is a proven method of reducing crime and bettering an area.
I can understand the request for SUVs on one level. More room for equipment, an extra officer if need be. What I can't understand is the added expense of purchasing a new fleet. These aren't off the lot vehicles either, a full-kitted out squad car can cost 40-60,000 with all the work that goes into them. SUVs would add to that considerably. Add the cost of maintenance (SUVs cost more) and additional wear and tear on the roads from adding hundreds, if not thousands of very heavy vehicles on the streets?
Come on now Weis, you had me with the fitness and changing around the top spots, don't wander off the map with this kind of twaddle.
all you got to know is sharp corners and a 5-speed manual trans will get you far away from these in a jiffy.
There are a few hybrid SUVs around.
Hybrids for cops are not useful - they need to be able to pursue criminals, and hybrids aren't known for their acceleration...
Of course, SUVs in general aren't either... What's wrong with the ever-faithful sedan shape?
put em in hummers and it'll be even easier to get away from the coppers....
wtf? seriously, SUVs? wtf? makes no sense.
as an aside, i agree, more beat cops. there will be much better community relations.
Do they even make SUV interceptors? That engine would have to massive.
And +1 to W
not to mention gas prices? go beat cops!
Yeah Hybrid SUV's...that does what? Raise the gas mileage from 9mpg to 13mpg?
Plus, 7-11 parking lots aren't big enough to accommodate all those SUV's.
If Weis is serious about this, he'd likely be looking to get the kind of SUVs that the FBI and other federal law enforcement use. They're pretty tricked out, with V8/V12 engines tuned for interception and speed, much like the police interceptor models on the caprices.
They usually clock in at about 80-90K a piece.
Yeah...that's money well spent.
I have always wondered if a non-cop wearing a nylon jacket with FBI or CPD written on the back constitutes impersonating a police officer.
Also, when did those NYPD baseball caps go out of style?
Should I sell my stock in Taser Inc., or should I hold on to it?
Did anyone stop to consider that he might be doing this to counteract the sheer hilarity of cops on Segways?
Segway cops are the saddest people on the force.
They just look so sad and pathetic.
They have this look of "yeah, I could be walking, and I can run faster than this thing can move, and I can corner better than this thing....but the damn mayor wants me on a segway. I hate my life"
My work desk is from the 1970s and falling apart. . I can understand an attempt to update the office as much as anyone else.
I bet Ward-Up wears a nylon CPD jacket
So the police department wants to replace the gas guzzling crown victoria with the gas guzzling SUV at the time when the city seems to be running out of money faster than Stroger can tax us?
I realize that perhaps given the requirements of an effective police vehicle, the hybrid option may be a bad one, but I think that we can do better than SUvs for cops.
toyota;
For your reading pleasure, one of the few 'cops aren't all bad' postings from Chicagoist regarding Segways.
http://chicagoist.com/2007/09/04/arrested_by_off.php
I would prefer those (imaginary) dollars go to hiring MORE police officers. More police=less crime.
They might be better off spending the money training their officers to be more polite to the law abiding public.
Just try and ask a cop a question...nothing but attitude.
Word on the Steet is that the Segways will be used by short cops on the sniper team. They will drive around with their high power rifles during the world games.
I can’t wait till the bring the show Cops (Celery Salt’s favorite show) to Chicago to film Chicago's finest on Segways
I doubt suv's would be cost effective for the police dept. But wies is right that the condition of the police cars is a joke. Bring back the cops on Harleys, expand the bike patrol(at least there in shape) and put more cops on the el and cta buses and then get some new cars for the rest.
Statement issued from Chicago Critical Mass.....
Given the ever-widening girth of many of Chicago's finest, perhaps the larger
vehicles are unavoidable......"
And yall think they are a anti SUV organization
Well...they yesterday's paper said the cops will soon be required to take physical fitness tests. Maybe critical mass is right.
@Spav:
I thought you HATED cops. Now you want more?
You flip-flopper...
"Jody Weis wants Chicago cops to drive SUVs instead of what he called the "horrible" fleet of cars they current drive."
SUVs? Aren't those the top heavy vehicles notorious for tumbling in high speed turns? That should prove entertaining during a chase.
I've been wondering why having huge engines in most patrol cars is even necessary. I mean, how fast can they drive in the city? Even in a chase?
I really can't see them doing 70mph on Clark St. Maybe Lakeshore. And, they don't patrol the expressways so...
I say buy a fleet of Prius'.