For some on the Far South Side, the name Jon Burge still elicits gasps. Diane Latiker who works in Roseland, thinks of “the boogeyman” at the mention of the former Chicago police commander who allegedly tortured crime suspects of the Area 2 headquarters for years in the 1970s and 1980s.
To younger residents, the name means nothing. The 63-year-old Burge is on trial right now in downtown Chicago. Not for torture, but for allegedly lying about torturing suspects.
The highly anticipated trial is already opening old wounds as those who suffered testify about what happened to them allegedly under the watch of one man. Seventeen years have passed since Burge was fired. Reporters Don Terry and Katie Fretland went back to the neighborhoods where Burge held sway and through dozens of interviews, found stark differences in how people feel about Burge and the trial.
What is clear is that suspicions between residents and the police still run deep. Residents already dealing with crime on a daily basis in these neighborhoods tell of being harassed and questioned by police. As Don and Katie report, a legacy of mistrust is undermining efforts to stop the violent crime there. Be sure to click on the terrific photo gallery from the neighborhood by photographer Jose More.
Another high-profile trial is going on in the city as well. Former Gov. Rod Blagojevich stepped into the Dirksen Federal Building last Thursday, the first of many days he’ll be doing that over the next several months. Like many former public officials who have been on trial there before him, Blagojevich attracts the media horde on the way in and out.
Entrances and exits by high-profile officials are very important. And over the years, those on trial have used different entrances, acted stoically, aloof, have stayed mum or have, like Blagojevich, found it hard not to at least say something (See our video of the ex-governor greeting a U.S. Marshal with “Hi Handsome“). Reporter Daniel Libit, who is live-blogging from the trial every day, looks at how public entrances and exits at Dirksen have helped and hurt officials over the years.
Columnist James Warren examines the issue of Republican congressman Mark Kirk’s (no relation to the person writing this letter) revelation that he lied about his military record. Warren writes that Kirk is the latest in a long line of prominent Americans caught lying about their past. There are many, including Richard Blumenthal, the Connecticut attorney general and Democratic Senate candidate (Vietnam record); George O’Leary, the then-just-hired Notre Dame football coach (made-up athletic and academic claims); and David J. Edmondson, a Radio Shack top executive (fibbed about his educational background).
Warren explains that the timing of Kirk’s announcement is a setback for Republicans looking to gain ground here, amid a number of Democratic stumbles, including the Blagojevich mess.
Finally, in the Chicago Way, City Hall reporter Dan Mihalopoulos tells us that amid budget cuts and city workers having to take weeks off without pay, a pet charity of Mayor Daley’s wife is getting an infusion of cash from City of Chicago coffers. The nonprofit group After School Matters, founded and still led by Maggie Daley, was paid almost $15 million by the city in 2009, far more than the previous year. The mayor defended the program and chastised us for asking about it. “Are you questioning my wife now?” he asked our reporter at a public event on Friday. Classic Chicago Way.
Thanks for reading.