Chicago Top Cop Out Amid Scandal

(AP)  Chicago's police superintendent announced Monday he is retiring early as his department tries to deal with two highly publicized videotaped beatings involving off-duty police officers.

Last month, prosecutors filed felony charges against one officer accused of beating a female bartender. Six other officers were removed from street duty after they were accused of assaulting four businessmen in a bar.

Superintendent Philip J. Cline, who took over as superintendent in November 2003 and had been expected to retire later this year, said at a news conference he would stay on until a replacement was found. He did not take questions from reporters.

"Mayor Daley has given me a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to lead the best police department in the country, and I thank him for that," said Cline, 57.

To the city's police officers, he said: "I encourage all of them to rise above any controversy and stay focused on the mission."

Mayor Richard M. Daley would not say whether he asked Cline to leave now; he said Cline had wanted to retire a year ago but stayed at Daley's request.

"The vast majority of Chicago police officers are dedicated, hard working professional men and women who perform their jobs diligently every day," Daley said. "Unfortunately, the actions of just a few officers," can tarnish the department's image.

The department was internationally vilified after the bar surveillance footage of an off-duty officer pummeling a female bartender half his size was broadcast worldwide through 24-hour news channels and on YouTube.

Police said the footage showed Anthony Abbate, a 12-year veteran of the force, punching, kicking and throwing 24-year-old bartender Karolina Obrycka to the floor after she reportedly refused to continue serving him drinks. Obrycka suffered bruises to her head, neck, back and lower body, according to her attorney, Terry Ekl.

Officials have been criticized for waiting a month to arrest Abbate and for initially charging him with a misdemeanor.

In his brief statement on Monday, Cline also alluded to the apparent effort by police officers to help Abbate enter and leave a court building without having to face the media outside. That caused an outcry in the media about the way police officers protect fellow officers accused of breaking the law.

Videotape of the other confrontation, on Dec. 15, has not been seen by the public. Police had been called to the bar that night, but a sergeant who was among the officers involved in the fight waved them off, Cline said. He announced last week that the six officers had been taken off street duty.

Cline didn't say Monday what role the beatings played in his announcement, only referring to them obliquely as "these times of challenge."

He has clearly been embarrassed, saying Abbate "tarnished our image worse than anybody else in the history of the department," and that he was "disgusted to witness this type of conduct" by officers.

After the beatings came to light, Cline said he would change the way the department responds to allegations of misconduct, including moving faster to get officers accused of misconduct off the street.

He stressed improvements Monday in the department of 13,500 officers and 3,000 civilians made under his leadership.

"Three and a-half years ago, Chicago was the homicide capital of the country," he said. "Mayor Daley gave me a mandate as the new police superintendent to reduce homicides and shootings and to make Chicago the safest big city in America. Since that time the men and women of the police department have answered that call."

Cline was born in Chicago and began his police career in 1968. His first beat was the tough Cabrini-Green housing projects. He was named chief of detectives in 2001 and first deputy superintendent two years later.

[godi70]

I am only an alien in this country and in 15 years I have learned that the police is more dangerous that the criminals. That is not a joke that is a cruel reality.

Among the human being today, there are not real professional%u2019s schools where moral and professionals%u2019 sciences will be learned. A policeman is everybody that in 6 month receives a revolver around the belt and the diploma and idea he is God about laws running the streets. Now someone%u2019s are also Immigration police.

In some states policeman are ex-prisoners. That means people who have some bills against the human society-laws. Now they can play to the burglar and the police.
What can be done about? I do not believe that it will be better. Schools today are only a ****** for a society where the violence is real justice. Look the picture of the case in Chicago and we see the direct real world.

[tibu987]

The buck stopped with Cline and he stepped down.
Scarier are the many policemen who protect the bad guys policemen or not.
There are many police out there that feel that they are above the law and others who protect them when they do.
That is a travesty of justice to all of us.
Bad cops should be prosecuted to the full extent of the law and nothing less.

[littlebull2]

I had trouble with Chicago police, in 1964 Two big policemen stopped us said we ran a stop light. But did not write a ticket ask for $ 10:00 & let us go That is your big city police.

[formrusmcsgt]

The Daleys are STILL running Chicago?! I thought that the founders of this country intended to stop hereditary oligarchies...
Posted by grimloxz at 05:45 PM : Apr 02, 2007

When successive generations of the same family are democraticaly elected, it is not an oligarchy.

[jn122736]

If this had not been caught on tape and still reported by the victim it would have been investigated and dismissed as justified self-defense by the offices and any comments to the contrary by a poster here would be met with ridicule and accusations of %u201Ccop bashing%u201D by many other posters.

The officers in New York who shot 50 rounds into a car because they thought the victims were trying to find a weapon had many more defenders that critics posting here even after three of the officers were indicted by a grand jury.

No wonder we have so many rogue cops.

[grimloxz]

The Daleys are STILL running Chicago?! I thought that the founders of this country intended to stop hereditary oligarchies...

[sainethepain]

Come on. No one can be surprised by this, a cop beating some one. Cops don't care about your rights. All they care about is an arrest.

[bboc77]

Yes this is pathetic. And it happens more times than we know about. I wish i could catch one of the sorry losers in street clothes and it would be the opposite of what we seen on the news. My best friend's family won a multi-million dollar law suit against the Chicago Police Dept. because they killed his uncle after pulling him over for a busted tail light.

[theusa1st]

I have seen the beating on the news numerous times. The cop is a scumbag human that should be put away...for a long time. I don't have much nice to say about the cowards standing around watching it either...this was a small woman getting badly beaten. It took an older man to finally get the guy to stop. Pathetic....

[formrusmcsgt]

You can tell just by looking at this slob who surely hasn't seen his own feet for years that it has been a long time since he was in any condition to apprehend anyone.

Looks like he got more than his share of time at Dunkin Donuts though, eh?