City releases former top cop Garry McCarthy's emails

CHICAGO (WLS) -- More than a thousand emails were released Thursday detailing the days after former Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy's firing.

The emails were released by the city after the Chicago Tribune requested them under the open records law. A Cook County judge granted the request.

The I-Team spent hours going over those emails on Thursday. Many contain updates on specific crimes in Chicago, spam, even a daily update from the police news affairs department on what the media was covering.

Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson, meeting with Chicagoans in the 38th ward, talked about McCarthy on Thursday.

"I think he brought a lot of good things to the city of Chicago and certainly to the Chicago police department," said Johnson.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel fired McCarthy on December 1, 2015. The I-Team has reviewed hundreds of them, many of which show support from fellow cops, including current Superintendent Eddie Johnson.

The day McCarthy was fired, Johnson wrote: "I know things are spinning right now, but I just wanted to drop you a line expressing my gratitude and appreciation for all that you have done for me and taught me along the way. I wish you nothing but the best and hopefully we can hoist a glass."

"I just wished him good luck, he's been a mentor and he promoted me a couple of times while he was here, so I just wanted him to know I'll be here if he needs something," said Johnson of the email on Thursday.

Eddie Johnson was a deputy chief at the time he sent that email to McCarthy. It would be John Escalante who would become interim superintendent in the weeks after McCarthy's firing.

McCarthy spoke exclusively with ABC7 on Wednesday about Johnson's qualifications.

"He was the first person I promoted, I made him a deputy chief. He was my last promotion when I made him chief of patrol. So, Eddie is a really solid guy. I think the world of him and I'll do anything I can to help him," McCarthy said.

The I-Team has only found one email in McCarthy's city account that references Laquan McDonald. McCarthy responded to a CPD statement regarding the file, writing: "Good time to put this out! Oh, wait. It's a week too late."

The response appears to be a sarcastic dig aimed at Mayor Emanuel's office. McCarthy had been fired just days before.

The Chicago Tribune is also reporting McCarthy also had a second police email account and none of those emails were provided by the city of Chicago.

Despite being fired December 1, McCarthy had access to his emails until the end of the year.

You can watch much more of that exclusive interview on Newsviews during Eyewitness News Sunday morning starting at 8 a.m.