Weis outlines plans for combating gangs, drugs

AP:

Weis promoted what he called the "Mobile Strike Force," which will combat gangs through arrests, search warrants and gun seizures. He says the unit would consist of about 150 existing officers divided into about a dozen teams.

Another part of this discussion was police beats:

With police hiring slowing to a crawl and Chicago homicides outpacing New York and Los Angeles, Police Supt. Jody Weis vowed Friday to deliver on a promise made and broken by at least four of his predecessors: beat realignment.

“They haven’t been moved around since 1978. That’s three decades of people making empty promises. Nothing against my predecessors, but at some time, you’ve got to look at a problem and say, ‘I know I can’t make every one of the 50 aldermen happy, but we have to make sure we have the right resources in the right locations,’ ” Weis said.

“I'm 100 percent committed to that. … I know we’ll upset some people. But we have to have fair police service to every community.”

Testifying at City Council budget hearings, Weis refused to commit to a deadline. He said he’s more concerned that it’s “done right” than fast.

It will be done based on a formula that weighs violent crime most heavily, along with property crime, poverty, unemployment, population density and high-threat targets. He acknowledged that some wards will see the police presence drop.

“If we move people into other districts and other wards, we’ve got to take from some other place,” he said. “… I want it to be based on factors that ensure all citizens … get equal police coverage based upon the threat that they’re facing.”

Well City Alderman doesn't exactly hold him responsible for the rising crime in Chicago:

But two hours into the hearing, aldermen were considerably more genteel and complimentary of the superintendent's performance, 10 months into his term, compared to his last appearance before the same body this summer. Aldermen acknowledged Weis' efforts to revamp his department in the face of rising crime.
...
Several aldermen lamented cuts to the department, saying they wished the city could find money elsewhere to provide more officers, but didn't offer any suggestions as to where that money would come from.  Weis acknowledged the city's plan to slow hiring and filling of vacancies, with only 200 officers expected to be hired next year.

Still, the rise in violent crime, at almost 15 percent increase in homicides at the end of September, came up repeatedly, with many aldermen questioning what police are doing to fight gangs and drugs.

Tough times the budget situation and the crime situation.