Melba Lara: You're listening to WBEZ. Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot is asking the city council to boost the police budget next year to $1.94 billion. Council members are questioning top police officials today at CPDs annual budget hearing. WBEZ's Chip Mitchell is here with the latest. He's at City Hall and Chip, that's nearly $2 billion for Chicago police next year. That seems like quite a bit of money. 

Chip Mitchell: Yeah, it is a lot. But now that it's actually just slightly above what the city budgeted for CPD in the budget year that ends in December. Now the amount paid by taxpayers next year would increase by 1.6%. And Melba, I did not hear a single aldermen during the first four hours of today's hearing raise any qualms about this big figure.

Melba Lara: Well Chip, what did city council members ask about? 

Chip Mitchell: Well, they mainly wanted to talk about crime fighting strategies. So stuff like ShotSpotter whether that gun detection system was working, or just encouraging police to show up after the fact. And what CPDs is doing about open air sales of heroin and other opioids in parts of the West Side. Now Superintendent David Brown tried to address the questions and he reminded council members that homicides and shootings are actually down from last year. Now Brown did not mention that last year, Chicago had its most murders in a quarter century, and several aldermen were shaking their heads. Here's Harry Osterman, he represents a Northside Ward along the Lake. 

Harry Osterman: In your tenure, we have not made strides. I feel like communities that have had excessive violence continue to have excessive violence. I feel like communities like mine that have had hard fought safety over decades has had increased violence. In front of Wrigley Field, five people were kidnapped. One of the things that I feel strongly about is that I don't feel that you've had a comprehensive plan to address violence that has bought people in. 

Melba Lara: That's Northside Alderman Harry Osterman. And Chip there was a moment in the hearing today where an alderman stormed out of the council chambers while shouting what happened there. 

Chip Mitchell: Well, Alderman Matt O'Shea, he represents a far south side ward with a lot of police officers. He wanted to make a point about demonization of cops and he asked aldermen for a show of hands, who wants fewer police in their wards? He thought no hands would go up. But one hand did go up. It was Alderman Byron Sigcho-Lopez, his Ward includes a lot of Mexican Americans. He got up from his chair and headed for the door of the council chambers. And as he stormed out, he yelled back, "take the white supremacist too!" So Sigcho-Lopez, he was referring to this cop Robert Baker. He's been tied to a far right white nationalist group called the Proud Boys. And it came out this past week that superintendent brown approved a mediation deal that suspends Baker for 120 days, but then returns him to the police force. Here's how Brown defended that deal at the hearing today. 

David Brown: I've been Black a long time, I would not tolerate an officer being a member of or being associated with a hate group. We were not able to prove by a preponderance of evidence that this officer was a member of or was associated with Proud Boys or any other hate group. What we did prove is that this officer failed to notify us that he had talked with federal authorities and some other minor violations. 

Chip Mitchell: So that's Police Superintendent David Brown at today's CPD budget hearing. Now hearings about each city department, their budget, they wrap up early next week and Melba, the City Council usually passes the mayor's proposed budget within a few weeks. 

Melba Lara: That's WBEZ's Chip Mitchell at Chicago City Hall. Chip, thanks for keeping us up to date. 

Chip Mitchell: My pleasure. 

Melba Lara: This is WBEZ.

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