A Chicago Police spokesperson urged CTA riders —would-be security volunteers or otherwise —not to step in as vigilantes and instead call 911 if they witness a crime or something suspicious… “The police do not need private citizens taking law enforcement matters into their own hands,” CPD spokesperson Tom Ahern said.” (NBC 5 Chicago)
Vigilante:: a member of a volunteer committee organized to suppress and punish crime summarily (as when the processes of law are viewed as inadequate) broadly: a self-appointed doer of justice (Merriam Webster)
It was only a matter of time before vigilantes would crop up like weeds to “fight” crime. It will be only a matter of time before vigilantes seriously injure or kill someone.
Vigilantes are not new in Chicago. The city and CTA allowed a vigilante group, The Guardian Angels, to patrol the Els years back. Why? Curtis Sliwa, the vigilante group leader, is a shameless self-promoter. The news media fell in slobbering love with his group of vigilantes. The city and CTA caved into the drooling media mob.
The Guardian Angels did little to mitigate crime, but they shore did look purty with their cute little red beanies. All they needed were propellers.
One of Chicago’s greatest self-promoters, Tio “P.T. Barnum” Hardiman, formed a vigilante group to patrol the CTA Red Line. Naturally, he held a press conference. The puerile Chicago news media showed up drooling all over him instead of ignoring or opposing him. Once again, the city and CTA will allow vigilantes to “patrol” the El system with no accountability, liability, or transparency.
This vigilante group consists of volunteer licensed security guards trained in the martial arts and others trained in de-escalation- whatever that means- to patrol the north and southbound Red Line trains eight hours a day.
What can go wrong? Who will be accountable and liable if the vigilantes seriously injure or “accidentally” kill someone? Will the taxpayers be on the hook for a lawsuit settlement? Will the vigilantes be held criminally responsible? Suppose one of the vigilantes gets shot or seriously injured. Will the news media make them a hero of the republic?
See the video at the end of this post where the vigilante Guardian Angels tried to detain a man, who had obvious mental health issues, for smoking pot on the El platform. He was leaving the station. All they had to do was follow him to make sure he left. Instead, they escalated the situation. Appalled bystanders protested their violent action. The vigilantes made the whole thing look heroic, the man look like a violent criminal, and the bystanders looked like fools. He was smoking weed. He was bothering no one. He was leaving the station.
It is time the city and CTA grew a pair and ban Hardiman and his group of vigilantes or any others, including the Guardian Angels, from patrolling the Els or any place else in Chicago. If Mayor Lori Lightfoot has the biggest d**k in the city, she should demonstrate she also has the biggest b**ls. Ban vigilantism in Chicago.
What if groups of concealed carry holders decided to form vigilante groups to patrol the Els or the streets? Will the mayor allow it? Would the horny teenaged news media fawn over them as they did over Tio Hardiman and the Guardian Angels? What if some lone armed vigilante decided to take matters into their own hands and hunt for active criminals?
The real problem being ignored by the news media is the inept leadership of Superintendent David “Tex” Brown. When crime spiked on the public transportation system, he should have beefed up patrols on the trains and platforms. Instead, he keeps fumbling and bumbling, having no idea what he is doing. He should have been fired long ago.
The hormonally charged news media need to stop fawning, drooling, and slobbering over vigilante groups formed by charlatans and frauds whose only goal is self-promotion. People like Tio Hardiman should be ignored. He did nothing to improve conditions on Chicago’s streets except to promote himself. Tio’s “Greatest Show on Earth.”
There is a sucker born every minute. The Chicago news media is breeding them every minute. So are City Hall and the CTA. So are the citizens in this city of fools.
Chicago needs solutions to the crime issues plaguing the city. We do not need bumblers and fumblers like Tex Brown. We do not need vigilantes. We do not need mountebanks and quacksalvers like Tio Hardiman.
Note: The original video when published did not have the text justifying the vigilantes’ violent actions. It must have been added later.