Nervous about Chicago's future, mayoral candidate Kam Buckner wants to change city's trajectory
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Kam Buckner is a third-term state representative from the South Side who wants to leave Springfield to lead Chicago.
Buckner believes public safety is voters' first, second, and third priority this mayoral election. CBS 2 Political Investigator Dana Kozlov talked with him about how he'd make the city safer.
"I'm a little bit nervous about where we are as a city," Buckner said.
And Buckner, 37, believes he change the city's trajectory. First up on his agenda: filling 1,600 police officer vacancies.
What are his recruitment plans or specific ideas for accomplishing that goal?
"I think the issues with CPD actually start with leadership. So not only do I think we need a new mayor, I think we need a new superintendent. And I think from there, we can begin to reconfigure the department," he said.
That reconfiguration begins with beefing up detective ranks, but that would mean pulling patrol officers off the streets.
So how does he plan to fill the gap and recruit new officers?
"Here's the deal. All of those vacancies don't have to be filled by officers, right? I've talked about civilianizing certain functions within the department," Buckner said.
Buckner wants to hire more civilian staff who could, for example, work in a newly created internet intelligence unit at the Chicago Police Department to scour social media to help fight crime.
Kozlov: "How many civilian employees, and how do you pay for them?"
Buckner: "I think the numbers are already in the budget, right?. We've got 1,500 officers that were budgeted for this year we're not paying for right now. So this is not new money."
Buckner talks a lot about reallocation, including making sure the CTA is patrolled as part of Chicago police district beat patrols. When it comes to CTA safety, he also wants to connect all of the system's video cameras to a single headquarters, and create a text program for riders who spot trouble.
He said those text messages would go "to wherever that headquarters is where people can be disseminated."
Buckner's plan also includes increasing mental health responders, and opening 20 new mental health clinics.
Where would that money come from?
"This is once again a opportunity to pick up money we've left on the table," Buckner said.
Buckner said the funding would come from Springfield and Washington, D.C.
Kozlov also asked Buckner about his two past arrests for drunk driving. His probation for the most recent one is wrapping up soon.
Kozlov: "If there was a substance abuse problem, have you effectively managed it, and do you feel it would not interfere with your ability to lead the third biggest city in the entire country?"
Buckner: "Let me be very clear about this. I've been not only honest and open about my past mistakes, but I've been accountable. I've done the actual work."
Kozlov: "This is not something you believe voters need to worry about and it's not controlling your life in any way?"
Buckner: "That's right. Absolutely."
Buckner also wants to remap the city's police districts, based on data and input from the community. He said that would enhance the city's police response.
One thing people might not know about him? The former University of Illinois football player studied ballet for eight years as a child.
