Police Departments Cicero and?? (Chicago, Aurora: section 8, rent, roughest)

[brandon.jakubik]

What are the police officers/ departments like around Cicero? Can you tell me about the gang activities in this area? Whats some of the more "dangerous" and roughest areas of chicago? What police departments cover those areas?

I am wondering this because in a year I will have my bachelors degree in Homeland Security and Public Safety and will be looking at California(Santa Monica, Newport Beach, Laguna Beach) and Florida (Miami, Orlando, Panama City Beach) for police jobs

But yesterday my buddy and I had to go pick his girl friend up at the MidWay airport and we got lost, ended up in Cicero and some rough areas.... I noticed Harlem Ave/ Cicero were filled with gang members everywhere..... lots and lots of guys in what looked to be gang areas......

I am looking for a police job that will give me action and keep me on my toes

Please tell me all you know that will help me

Thank You

Brandon J
Madison, Wi

[gardener34]

I don't know what the police dept. is like there now, they had a big shakedown when Betty Loren Maltese was in there I know. Wrongful termination cases that were won.

But if you are looking for gangs, the collar burbs of Maywood, Cicero, and to a lesser extent, Bellwood may be a good place to start. Also Aurora and Elgin out here in Kane county.

Of course the city itself is the hotbed, esp. the Little Village area.

[via chicago]

cicero is NOTORIOUS for corruption. its in its blood. going back to al capone, up to the modern day Chicago Outfit, some members of which are now in court in the "Family Secrets" trial (the stuff that went and goes on is better than anything Martin Scorcese could ever write. this is real), as well as corrupt politicians. Never a dull moment. Just do a search for cicero+mob

I do know cicero has a massive beat police department, as well as narcotics and gang task forces. I think it would be rewarding if you're looking for some action and to make a difference.

[BRU67]

Originally Posted by brandon.jakubik

What are the police officers/ departments like around Cicero? Can you tell me about the gang activities in this area? Whats some of the more "dangerous" and roughest areas of chicago? What police departments cover those areas?

I am wondering this because in a year I will have my bachelors degree in Homeland Security and Public Safety and will be looking at California(Santa Monica, Newport Beach, Laguna Beach) and Florida (Miami, Orlando, Panama City Beach) for police jobs

But yesterday my buddy and I had to go pick his girl friend up at the MidWay airport and we got lost, ended up in Cicero and some rough areas.... I noticed Harlem Ave/ Cicero were filled with gang members everywhere..... lots and lots of guys in what looked to be gang areas......

I am looking for a police job that will give me action and keep me on my toes

Please tell me all you know that will help me

Thank You

Brandon J
Madison, Wi

Depends on what kind of action you're looking for. Cicero does have some gang issues and a pretty proactive police department. A friend of mine served on it in the late 1990s and told me how they were always looking to mix it up. His stories are interesting to say the least! He also said it's a pretty good department to work for.

The south suburbs are getting a lot of the Section 8 spillover being pushed out of Chicago and there's certainly a lot of action there too. But the trouble is that most of those departments are in impovrished communities which can't afford to pay police much, so there's a lot of internal corruption. Police officers making $10/hour without benefits tend to be prone to "supplementing" their income on the street, if you know what I mean. Don't know if I'd want any part of that.

Of course, there's always the Chicago PD. Englewood is probably the most dangerous single area in the City and Chicagoland area. And there are plenty of hot spots on the west and south sides. But I don't know if you can pick what area you go to out of the academy. You could end up in Lincoln Park busting drunk frat boys for public urniation and date rape for a living, I don't know. I also had a friend on the CPD (assigned to the northwest side) and he found it rather boring.

[ciceroguy]

Well the police in Cicero are just like police anywhere else. The dept is made up of a lot of political types but in recent years they outsourced their testing and raised education requirments. They are also one of the highest paying departments in the state.

As far as action there is plenty of it. Plenty of gangs and shootings. It would help if you speak both spanish and english.

[irish setter girl]

My only beef with Cicero is they used to have (maybe they still do) a requirement that all homes needed to purchase a 350.00 GARBAGE CAN from the city to use the local waste hauler. We did a few rehabs in Cicero and they wouldn't give us our occupancy permit because we had not purchased our garbage can. I just about blew a gasket on that one! Our business partner always joked that if he won the lottery he was going to buy 1,000 garbage cans, rent a plane and toss them out over Cicero. He hasn't won yet