During his tenure, Eddie Johnson dealt with gun violence, criticism from President Trump and 'Empire' actor Jussie Smollett’s fake hate crime.
USA TODAYCHICAGO — Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson announced his retirement Thursday after 31 years on the force and more than three years as top officer of the nation's second-largest police department.
The announcement comes amid an investigation into why Johnson, 59, was found asleep behind the wheel of his SUV at a stop sign last month. Johnson called for the investigation of himself, attributing the cause to a change in his blood pressure medication. Mayor Lori Lightfoot later told the Chicago Sun-Times that Johnson said he had"a couple of drinks with dinner" that same night.
Initially a pre-med student, Johnson joined the police department in 1988. He was appointed to superintendent in 2016 by then-Mayor Rahm Emanuel, who had fired Superintendent Garry McCarthy following the release of police dashcam video of white officer Jason Van Dyke fatally shooting black teen Laquan McDonald.
In early 2017, a Department of Justice investigation concluded that the CPD was beset by widespread racial bias, excessive use of force, poor training and feckless oversight of officers accused of misconduct.When"Empire" actor Jussie Smollett staged a fake hate crime this past January, Johnson was furious, saying Smollett owed the city an apology for wasting its time and money.
Johnson said Trump distorted conditions in a city where the crime rate is falling."The national narrative that Chicago is a city on fire is simply not true," he said.
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