Mayor says police officers are becoming ‘fetal’

When I stop here is it my career on the line?’

‘We have allowed our police department to get fetal, and it is having a direct effect, ‘ Emanuel was quoted by the Washington Post as saying at the meeting. “They have pulled back from the ability to interdict… they don’t want to be a news story themselves, they don’t want their career ended early, and it’s having an impact”, Emanuel said, according to the Washington Post.

Emanuel and a slew of other mayors and police officials attend a Justice Department Summit on violence and crime reduction in Washington D.C. on October 7. And officers will tell you that.

On Monday, Emanuel defended that comment to the Chicago Tribune, saying the events that happened in Ferguson and Baltimore led many officers to back down when they might not have before.

Dean Angelo, president of Chicago’s police union, acknowledged that rank-and-file officers are concerned about the increased scrutiny in the wake of the recent events involving police-involved deaths, but he rejected the notion that they are neglecting their duties for fear of getting in trouble. Emanuel said at an unrelated news conference.

Additionally, Angelo posed who – if not the non-proactive men and women of the Chicago Police Department – has been responsible for the removal of almost 5,500 illegal guns from the streets this year alone?

The criticism obviously touched a nerve with Emanuel.

It is being called the “YouTube effect”, the fear that every single interaction is being captured by cell phone or other video, and may be dissected and therefore inaccurately characterize what actually occurred, leaving the officer facing a world of negativity. Emanuel says, “When you see a situation do you stop, and officers will tell you, officers themselves are telling me about news over the last 15 months has impacted their instincts”. Chicago’s mayor is taking that a step further, calling for coding classes to be a national graduation requirement – under such a mandate, all students would have to take such classes to get their high school diploma.

“I don’t think they’re standing down”. I brought that example up. Mayor Emanuel says he’s asked Attorney General Loretta Lynch to support officers who are doing a good job at practicing community policing.