Over seven years, Chicago police officer Richard Rizzo has been arrested four times by fellow officers on charges including domestic battery, child endangerment, and aggravated assault with a gun. Each time, says the Chicago Sun-Times, prosecutors dropped charges against the 15-year police veteran. Rizzo, 44, is still a member of the department, making $80,724 a year. Now comes news that Rizzo was relieved of his police powers on June 13 — six days after the Sun-Times asked about his status.
The newspaper says Rizzo is among the fraternity of Chicago cops who, despite repeated run-ins with the law, have continued working for the department. In a three-year stint as police superintendent, Jody Weis tried to get 66 employees fired. Of those, 19 ended up fired by the Chicago Police Board, a nine-member panel of mayoral appointees. “It was frustrating,” Weis says. “Oftentimes, these guys are recidivists, where they'll go out and embarrass the department again.”