CHICAGO (WBBM NEWSRADIO) — Chicago Police Supt. David Brown promised to put even more officers on the CTA in response to recent violence on buses and trains, but he said he's not ready to accept an offer of help from a community activist.
Although Brown admitted that there's a spike in violence on the CTA this year, he said it's still 43% lower than it was before the pandemic.
He said that's evidence that the police response to violence is working, though Brown is still looking for ways to reassign officers to mass transit — including moving some from desk duty.
“We got a lot more work to do,” Brown said. “This is not going to be an easy task, but we’re dedicated to ensuring that people who ride the CTA are safe.”
Community activist Tio Hardiman called on Brown and the CTA to hire security experts recruited and trained by his organization, Violence Interrupters, to provide extra patrols on the CTA.
Brown said that while he's been talking with Hardiman about ways his group can help, he doesn’t think hiring those security experts is the answer.
“Of course we need more eyes and ears,” Brown said. “We ask all residents on the CTA to report what they see … so that we can respond, but beyond that I’ll defer to that longstanding discussion with [Hardiman] regarding how helpful they can be.”
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