A Chicago alderman has revealed that shortages on the police force now include a third of all positions assigned to O'Hare and Midway airports, the Sun-Times reports.
Ald. Isaac Carothers (29th Ward), chairman of the City Council Police Committee, released the figures during hearings this week.
"Police sources said most of the vacant positions are regularly filled with off-duty officers getting overtime pay," the paper reports. "They said public safety is not being compromised because of the vacancies."
So if the positions were filled, public safety would not be enhanced?
Neither Carothers or the paper said so, but they did indicate that the shortage was due to transferring officers from the airports to city neighborhoods, even though airport police are paid through a separate airport revenue fund.
