Chicago residents have had a tough few years. Former Mayor Lori Lightfoot lost her reelection because she refused to take crime serious. The county state’s attorneys refused to hold violent criminals responsible, even when their crimes had been captured on camera. The crime rate in Chicago has risen exponentially.
City Prosecutor leaves Chicago over crime rate
It’s so bad that a veteran city prosecutor has quit and moved his family. In a letter he sent on his way out, he criticized city leadership.
Jason Poje, an experienced felony trial lawyer with 20 years of experience, wrote: “The simple truth is that this State has set itself on a path to disaster.”
Vicious and violent cycle
Poje has 20 years’ experience in the criminal justice system, which means he has seen a lot. The recent crime spike and the city’s elected leaders’ continued double-down on soft on crime policies and attacks on the law enforcement finally reached the threshold.
After Mayor Lightfoot imposed city-wide restrictions and lockdowns during the peak of the COVID epidemic, criminals were released. Some committed violent crimes, including murder, immediately after being released.
The prosecution announced that they would not prosecute lawbreakers during COVID-19. Mayor Lightfoot shifted the blame to the city’s chief of police. She even famously argued with a city official who demanded that action be taken on the crime issue.
Kim Foxx, the Cook County State’s attorney who oversees Chicago, caused a stir when she refused to charge a number of criminals following a violent incident that occurred over the weekend.
Police officers were nearby as criminals fired between cars and at a house. Tragically, one person was murdered. Five other people were taken into custody. Despite the video evidence that could have been used to charge the criminals with their crimes, nothing was done.
It’s been a tragic spiral for innocent city dwellers. Poje was fed up.
Getting Out
Poje’s resignation letter blasted the policies that he believes have destroyed Chicago. Particularly those coming from State’s Attorney Foxx’s office.
Poje wrote: “The worst thing is that the agency where I work has backed every policy change which had a predictable and predicted outcome of more crimes and more people being hurt.” He blamed the “stupid State’s Attorney policy.”
Chicago’s criminal policies are a prime example of a lawless, backwards approach that puts law-abiding Chicagoans in danger and limits their ability to protect themselves from criminals with no regard for innocent human life or the law.
Poje echoed the frustrations of Chicagoans.
“Many years back, my family and I found a quiet corner in the suburbs. My son, who is just 5, hears gunfire as he plays in our neighborhood park and a drug seller is open-air marketing behind my house. This is the second time in two years that this has happened.
“I won’t raise my son here.” I am fortunate to have the means of escape… but my own employer has made it a place where I no longer feel proud to be and my son is not secure.
Fox News reported that Assistant Cook County State’s Attorney Jim Murphy resigned too last year as a protest against Foxx’s ineptness.
“I wish I could remain,” he wrote. However, I cannot continue to work for this Administration. “I have zero confidence in leadership.”
What’s Ahead?
Chicago has a brand new mayor, Brandon Johnson. He pledged to be smart and tough on crime. Initial promises are hollow, but they sound like old promises. He wants to allocate funds to youth employment and collaborate with state officials.
During a debate on the election, Mayor Johnson acknowledged that he had previously described the “defunding the police” campaign as “not only admirable, but necessary.”
Mayor Johnson will name a new Chicago Police Chief in the near future.
Kim Foxx, the State’s Attorney, may have read the tea leaves when she announced that she would not run for re-election after two terms. It seems she hasn’t either learned that voters want criminals held accountable for their crimes.
“It’s in the public’s interest that we reform criminal justice.” Foxx told the media, “I leave with my head high and my heart filled.”
The resignations by city prosecutors Murphy & Poje could be an indication. If Chicago’s top officials continue to prefer a softer approach to crime over the safety and protection of law-abiding citizens, many more public resignations could be forthcoming due to the increasing crime rate.
Original story posted on NSSF.org.
Continue Reading
You didn’t find the information you were looking for
Search Engine
The post Chicago prosecutor moves his family out of city over crime rate appeared first on Personal Defense World.
