No Guarantees Or Consent Decree Talk In Top Cop's Meeting With AG Jeff Sessions

By Stephen Gossett in News on Mar 17, 2017 3:33PM

Attorney General Jeff Sessions (L) meets with Police Chiefs from major cities of the Chiefs of Police Association, at the Justice Department (Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images)

There was reportedly no discussion about the possibility of a consent decree and no formal guarantee of federal resources, but Supt. Eddie Johnson said he was satisfied with his meeting with Attorney General Jeff Sessions in Washington, D.C. on Thursday.

"It was very productive," Johnson told reporters following the meeting, which brought together several top cops from departments from around the country.

Prompted in part by President Donald Trump's relentless references to Chicago violence, whether and how exactly federal assistance to target the city's crime will materialize remains unclear. But when Johnson met with Sessions, he had apparently had no dearth of ideas.

Among the items on Johnson's wish list, according to reports: more federal prosecutors to help caseloads against violent felons; more assistance from ATF, FBI and DEA agents for increased task forces; funds for better lab technology; and money for community investment.

Johnson was in Springfield last week, where he argued in front of the Illinois Senate Criminal Law Committee, in favor of stricter sentencing standards for repeat gun offenders—which he has long viewed as a key lynchpin in combatting violent crime in Chicago.

Johnson is in Washington, D.C. on Friday, as well. He'll meet with deputy attorney general nominee Rod Rosenstein