Chicago Area Local News

CHICAGO (Sun-Times Media Wire) ― Chicago Police Supt. Jody Weis stripped his first deputy of key personnel powers in what critics call a show of no-confidence in the man he chose to oversee day-to-day operations of the Police Department.

The Aug. 12 special order means First Deputy Supt. James Jackson, who is African-American, will no longer chair the Merit Board charged with making merit promotions to the rank of sergeant, lieutenant and captain.

Instead, the board will be headed by former mayoral aide Ted O'Keefe, the civilian deputy superintendent of administrative services now developing an evaluation system for police officers for the first time since 2002.

A separate Weis order also stripped Jackson of the first deputy's long-standing power to control transfers not subject to seniority bidding requirements. That power will also be shifted to O'Keefe, former director of CAPS and the city's 311 non-emergency center.

Jackson and O'Keefe could not be reached for comment.

Department spokeswoman Monique Bond downplayed the changes, saying it makes sense to consolidate all personnel matters in the hands of O'Keefe, whose bureau includes the Personnel Division.

"We don't make any decisions on who goes anywhere unless it's someone in our bureau," personnel director Tracey Lardner added. "We're just taking over administrative tasks."

Others argue there's more to it. The changes come at a time when murders and other violent crime are up, and arrests, police interventions and ticketing are down. Under fire for a surge in violent crime that boiled over at Taste of Chicago, Weis told aldermen last month that police officers are being less aggressive because they're afraid of piling up citizen complaints.

"The superintendent is taking power away from Jim Jackson because he has no confidence in him. He feels Jimmy is too laid-back. He's not aggressive enough. He's not a go-getter. The only thing up is crime," said a source familiar with the changes.

The source suggested that Weis "would probably like to get rid of Jackson" but doesn't dare for fear of a racial backlash.

"So Jimmy is still sitting there going to meetings. But he's powerless. This is worse than what [former Police Supt.] Phil [Cline] did to Dana [Starks, the former first deputy]," the source said.

Fraternal Order of Police President Mark Donahue likened Weis' decision to strip Jackson of key personnel powers to the halftime adjustments made by football coaches.

"I wouldn't say he's lost confidence in the guy. I'd say in his ongoing transition, he's adjusting his immediate staff," Donahue said.

Two years ago, African-American aldermen accused Weis' predecessor, Cline, of "castrating" his black first deputy. It happened after Cline stripped Starks of control over the patrol division and the scandal-scarred and since-disbanded Special Operations Section.

Jackson, 50, is the former Harrison District commander who leapfrogged over more senior colleagues to become Weis' No. 2 man. He was chosen as part of an unprecedented housecleaning that swept out nearly all of the Police Department's top brass, along with 21 of 25 district commanders.

Jackson is a 23-year veteran who commanded one of the city's highest-crime districts. On the mid-February day he was appointed, Jackson candidly told reporters he was "shocked" by the opportunity to serve as right-hand man to Weis, an outsider and career FBI agent who has never been a street cop.

As for the importance of the Merit Board chair, Donahue said, "The official position of the union has always been that we're against merit promotions because of the way the selection process has been carried out. Historically, very little of the promotion process appears to have been done on the basis of merit."

--Sun-Times

(Source: Sun-Times Media Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2009. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

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