Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx called for Chicago Fraternal Order of Police President John Catanzara to resign Friday following comments he made that seemed to dismiss critics of the mob that stormed the United States Capitol.
In a statement, Foxx said for years, Catanzara has been "proudly unapologetic about his repugnant views."
"...Make no mistake, he meant what he said yesterday," she said. "He just regrets being held accountable. Just like Donald Trump, his hero, should submit his resignation, Catanzara should do what is best for his members and the law enforcement community and resign immediately."
Catanzara apologized Friday, writing to members of the police union that he "showed a lapse in judgement" during an interview and "for that I am sorry."
"I brought negative attention to our Lodge, the FOP family and law enforcement in general," Catanzara wrote. "I was in no way condoning the violence in DC [Wednesday]. My statements were poorly worded. I certainly would never justify any attacks on law enforcement. After seeing more video and the full aftermath, my comments would have been different."
In the interview with WBEZ reporter Chip Mitchell, Catanzara dismissed critiques of the violent mob that stormed the Capitol as “ridiculous and ignorant,” saying that they were seemingly only guilty of property damage.
“There was no arson. There was no burning of anything. There was no looting. There was very little destruction of property,” he said. “It was a bunch of pissed-off people that feel an election was stolen somehow, some way.”
Local
Catanzara went on to compare the storming of the Capitol to the unrest that followed the death of George Floyd in Minneapolis and the shooting of Jacob Blake in Kenosha, saying that it was “very different than what happened all across this country all summer long in Democratic-run cities.”
“If the worst crime (at the Capitol) is trespassing, so be it. But to call these people treasonous is beyond ridiculous and ignorant," he said.
At least four people died during the assault, including a woman who was shot and killed and three other individuals who died after suffering medical emergencies.
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot blasted the union leader, calling his stance a “clear delusion.”
“This wasn’t ‘frustration.’ It was a violent insurrection,” Lightfoot tweeted. “The comments by John Catanzara either demonstrate clear delusion or reckless disrespect for the rule of law – or both.”
But Catanzara said some of his comments were "overlooked."
"I ask that you consider the totality of my comments [Thursday]," he said. "What is almost totally overlooked was the fact I said the President needs to accept responsibility for yesterday's events and that he should formally concede the race to put everything to bed once and for all."
He noted that he is "never too big to admit when I am wrong."
