Chicago police announce teams to build community partnerships, handle large events
CHICAGO (WLS) -- The Chicago Police Department announced Monday the formation of two new teams focused on strengthening community partnerships, combating violent crime and handling large events like protests.
CPD Superintendent David Brown said the department would create the Community Safety Team and the Critical Incident Response Team.
RELATED: 51 shot, 3 fatally in Chicago weekend violence
Superintendent Brown said the Community Safety Team will operate in two units on the South and West Sides and will be combined with the Summer Mobile Patrol Unit for a total of 500 officers.
The Community Safety Teams would be assigned based on requests from district commanders, community input and crime data. They would focus on community initiatives such as peace marches, prayer circles, Operation Clean missions, food drives and more. They will also get special training in crisis intervention, community policing and more.
The Critical Incident Response Team will be composed of 250 officers and will handle special events, marches, large gatherings and protecting First Amendment rights. Superintendent Brown said the officers would have special training to identify crowd issues and First Amendment training.
"This is a critical step forward in our efforts to problem-solve with community members and directly address their specific concerns," said Superintendent Brown. "The only way to create safer communities is one neighborhood at a time."
The announcement comes on the heels of another violent weekend, with a total of 51 people shot and three people killed.
The previous weekend, a total of 63 people were shot, 12 fatally.
