Page 13 - February 2021

Financial Secretary’s Report
Voice your opposition to HB3653
Hello, fellow officers. I hope you are well and staying warm and dry.
The most recent attack on police has come in the form of HB3653. This bill introduced to us by the brain trust in Springfield touts the much-need- ed “police reform.” This bill will amend a 2004 law that required complainants or citizens who have accused police officers of misconduct to sign an affidavit. This same law was championed by the FOP and the then-head of OPS, Lori Lightfoot
(mid-2002 to late 2004). Apparently, when the sworn affidavit reduced Lightfoot’s workload by more than half, it was fine and dandy. This law passed Springfield’s General Assembly without opposition. But in today’s upside-down world, it’s cool and hip to hate on the police.
The lawmakers, mainly from the Chicagoland areas, are the most brain-dead. Many communities they represent, ravaged by senseless violence and socioeconomic depression, have not benefited from their state representatives’ or state sena- tors’ leadership. These same communities will continue to suf- fer and face greater violence when their police officers go into “self-preservation mode.” Many factors in this HB3653 seem like they were written for the criminal’s protection. What about the victim’s? Did any state representative or senator speak with a victim of a crime, victims’ families, victims’ rights groups or the police officers who serve as a voice for the victim from the
grave? We all know the answer to this question.
This legislation will be presented to the governor. He has 60
days to sign it, or it automatically becomes state law. I have personally seen the social media outrage and opposition to HB3653, mainly on law-enforcement-only sites or shared by friends and police supporters. We all must continue to call and voice opposition to this ridiculous bill. The calls to our own elected state representatives and state senators must not stop.
In closing, this brings me to my last point. Get off your asses and vote! If you and your family members are not registered to vote, you are part of the problem. When you call your elected of- ficials’ offices and they see that you are not registered to vote or have not voted, they don’t care what you have to say. Politicians understand only one thing, and that is a vote. This most recent FOP Political Action Committee has been the most active and literally the most hands-on force I have seen since being hired on the job. I’d like to personally thank all the officers, active and retired, as well as their friends and families, who came out to support FOP-endorsed candidates. They walked door to door passing out literature and worked polling places. In politics, we may not all agree on every candidate, but we must unite and become a force to be reckoned with against these lawmakers who continue to threaten our hard-won protections and our livelihoods.
Stay safe.
JIM JAKSTAVICH
CHICAGO LODGE 7 ■ FEBRUARY 2021 13