Why Touted Reform And Federal Oversight Is Meaningless For The Chicago Police Department

     If a police department is riddled with clout and cronyism, it does not matter how much federal oversight is implemented, nothing will change for the better. Chicago politicians were happy to go along with federal oversight and police reform because it completely ignored the corrupt use of clout and cronyism in police promotional practices.
      Recently a police sgt under investigation was the subject of a story in a major Chicago newspaper (July 8, 2017). Mention was made that the first deputy superintendent was responsible for the meritorious promotion of the sgt that the police department now seeks to fire. Why no one questioned the first deputy superintendent regarding why he meritoriously promoted this sgt is beyond comprehension.
       If a police department uses meritorious hiring, it must be clearly defined. The people that determine who qualifies for a meritorious promotion must be professional people that have no connection to an applicant. If there is a connection, the evaluator must disqualify himself or herself from evaluating that particular candidate.
       It is impossible to have a professional police department that perverts the true meaning of meritorious. A professional police department has no place for clout, cronyism, and political favoritism.