Who can help Brandon with his math?
The Fred Waller hire is myopic at best
By the time most of us are 10 years old, we know enough about adding and subtracting that if there is something that we can get three of those items for the cost of one, we will buy the three. Apparently Mayor Brandon Johnson skipped those days in school. Giving the OK for former/interim superintendent Fred Waller to rejoin the Chicago Police Department tells us numbers are not the mayor’s forte. Or, we can face the reality that we were hoodwinked by all parties involved.
For the $182,000 the City is now paying Waller to be the deputy director in Superintendent Larry Snelling’s office; Chicago could have hired
three police officers. If the mayor is truly interested in bringing down crime, wouldn’t it make more sense to hire cops who could potentially be on the job and on the streets for 20 years or more? The starting salary for a CPD officer is $54,600 and that amount moves up to $82,500 after 18 months. Of course, there are benefits but those can be squeezed from the existing budget.
At 62, the department isn’t likely to 10 years out of Waller, and in his new civilian role he won’t be on the streets making arrests. Some news outlets focused on the fact that Waller’s pension for his 20-plus years on the force, combined with the new salary will put his annual income at approximately $333,000. The pension is something he earned and doesn’t need to be in this equation.
The big question is exactly what Waller will be doing? Before coming back as the interim super at the beginning of the summer, and staying in that position for four months after being retired and away from CPD for nearly four years; it certainly doesn’t appear Waller has any keen insights that justifies the latest hiring. Snelling and the mayor should immediately explain what Waller will do that the department’s first deputy can’t or isn’t doing.
I guess the public wasn’t supposed to remember that Waller, on his way out and just before Snelling was confirmed, decided to move and/or promote 23 CPD officers and command staff personnel. It was a highly unusual move for someone who wasn’t sticking around, but it did guarantee his cronies would receive a larger pension upon retirement. Sounds like the “blue buddy” system operating in high gear. As convoluted as this system is, Waller might qualify for a second pension, this one from the city fund, if he can hang around long enough - approximately five years.