We mentioned it yesterday, but the numbers are in and they aren't pretty. In the first round of cuts meant to save money, the Chicago Public School System has cut 557 jobs. The cuts lower the CPS deficit by about $100 million, from $475 million to $375 million with even more cuts expected in the near future. According to the Sun-Times: more ›

He's been in place less than a week but new Chicago Public Schools CEO Ron Huberman is already going back to his old haunt, the Chicago Police Department, for some help. It was announced today that The Ron is bringing on CPD spokeswoman Monique Bond for a "a top advisory role" for his new administration. Bond, who's been CPD spokeswoman for four years, previously worked with The Ron in a spokeswoman capacity during his tenure as director of the Office of Emergency Management and Communications. more ›

Yesterday, we looked at the Chicago Police Department's efforts with President-Elect Barack Obama's security team and the cost (covered by the federal government) of the extra man hours. Looking to deflect the whisperings of criticism, Mayor Daley took to the press to defend the work being done to protect Obama and the benefit to Chicago. As usual, we can't do his words justice so we'll let him speak for himself:

This is a great honor…We’re excited about him being here. This is his transition. He could go to Washington, D.C…He’s not going to buy right into Washington. He’s here and he has people from all walks of life coming here. It is putting us on a global map more than anything else... more ›

It's been a rough year for new Chicago Police Superintendent Jody Weis. First was the Taste debacle, which led to his grilling by the City Council. Then came news last week that as crime has risen, arrests are down. But that's not the only number down, according to a report in today's Trib. It seems that Weis has been unable to deliver on a promise to hire more officers. In fact, due to "retirements, firings and resignations," the total number of officers on the force is down by 250. According to Mark Donahue, president of the Fraternal Order of Police, the department has lost approximately 375 officers while only hiring 125 new ones since the beginning of the year. And that total number could increase to a -400 difference by the end of the year. The force had somewhere in the neighborhood of 13,4000 sworn officers as of December 2007. more ›

In today's "No Shit" story, Chicago's 2008 murder rate is up 18 percent compared to the first seven months of 2007, including a particularly bloody July that saw 62 people killed. From January to July this year, 291 people were murdered while the same time period in 2007 saw 246 murders. While the July tally seems high, it's still below the 66 murders from July 2006, though 2008's year-to-date tally is still higher than 2006's 266 murders. more ›