Chicago law enforcement has suffered another humiliating stain on its record this week. Chicago officers are often depicted in television shows as tough Polish-American indivuals with thick accents. This reputation of the Polish-American officer on the beat contrasts sharply with the news out of Chicago where four veteran police officers are under arrest for allegedly shaking down Polish immigrants on the city's northwest side, authorities said.
The four officers, each with 20 years of police work under their belts, are charged with felonies including theft, official misconduct and filing false reports. More charges are reportedly being considered and will be filed shortly. Five other officers also are under investigation for similar crimes. All of the officers have been relieved of duty. The officers, all in uniform, approached Polish immigrants and “shook them down” for money. They were allegedly physically intimidating and used the authority of their badges to commit crimes. The action has left the Polish community badly shaken.
Many in the community compared the actions of the police to law enforcement officials in Poland under the former communist regime in that country. Stories of suppression by the former Soviet Union and their own internal secret police force, where bribes and corruption were commonplace, were related. Many have also voiced little hope of seeing adequate punishment for the officers.
"All of these officers are entitled to due process under the law," First Deputy Police Superintendent John Thomas said. "But in working closely with other law enforcement agencies, we're confident that our findings will mean that these individuals will never again tarnish the uniform, the name of the Chicago Police Department or the reputation of its dedicated members who serve this city so well."
As a result of this case, Chicago police have been reaching out to the city's Polish community to inform them of the department's proper procedures during traffic stops. The campaign has involved the distribution of 65,000 fliers and radio public service announcements in Polish and English, police said.
The Polish community shake-down scandal comes on the heels of yet another Chicago law enforcement scandal -- in March it was announced that the Chicago Police Gang Unit would be broken up. This as a result of several officers being charged with protecting the drug dealers they were assigned to investigate and arrest.
In April 1999, federal authorities charged Chicago police Officer Joseph J. Miedzianowski, a gang crimes specialist, with participating in a Miami-to-Chicago drug trafficking organization. A federal grand jury also indicted 13 suspected drug dealers or gang members.
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