Page 9 - June2020 FOP Magazine

SecondVice President’s Report
COPA investigator plays cops and robbers
Since it seems that the majority of the general public and the vocal policy makers clump every police officer into one group, for the sake of this article I will do the same regarding those COPA investigators employed to investigate allegations of police misconduct.
For those who missed it because it was not front-page news, a COPA investigator who has a concealed carry license was involved in his own shooting.
Here is some of what has been reported, as alleged, regard- ing the incident:
Alleged: Signed out an “M-Plate” car from COPA.
Alleged: Went searching for a family member’s vehicle that had been taken without permission.
Alleged: Along with his family members (including his wife), used the M-plate vehicle and went looking to recover the sto- len vehicle.
Alleged: Upon locating the stolen vehicle in an alley in the 10th District, attempted to box in the stolen vehicle and con- duct a traffic stop.
Alleged: Shot at the stolen vehicle when it sped away.
Alleged: Shot in the direction of family member(s) who were in the oncoming vehicle.
Alleged: Initially identified himself as a police officer to the responding officers.
Alleged: Initially denied shooing a gun.
Alleged: May not have been truthful about the number of shots fired.
It is unclear if either COPA or the inspector general’s office responded to conduct the investigation. But not to worry, it was reported that COPA did take its vehicle back.
Local media reported that, according to a COPA spokesper- son, the employee “was terminated from their position.” The media needs to ask these follow-up questions:
What exactly does “terminated from their position” mean? Is the employee still employed?
Is the employee still receiving benefits?
These are the type of investigators who take false com- plaints from citizens and then recommend the stripping of police powers from officers who follow the law.
DAN GORMAN
CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ JULY 2020 9