This time it is some of Cook Counties finest being accused.
http://cbs2chicago.com/local/local_story_080125651.htmlStroger Hospital Police Fight To Stay In Operation
Small Police Force Has Been Accused Of Brutality Against Reporter, Immigrant
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(CBS) CHICAGO The Stroger Hospital Police Department -- under fire for allegedly roughing people up -- is fighting to stay alive.
As WBBM Newsradio 780's Steve Miller reports, the hospital police have been the subject of allegations of manhandling a reporter and allegations of brutality against an elderly man.
The allegations were denied by the Stroger Hospital police, whose leadership called reporters together to say they are fighting to keep the department from being disbanded on Sept. 1, as the Cook County Board has voted to do.
The board voted to replace the police force at the county-run hospital with private security.
Sgt. Edwin Hernandez says he's been with the Stroger police for 27 years.
"We're not goons. We're not gestapos. And we do not do what they say we did," he said.
Sgt. Michele Spiller cited an incident last September which involved the alleged beating of an elderly man by three officers.
"We have been unjustly accused of certain things. The officers who were accused (in the case of) Augustin Sotomayor, they've been cleared by the FBI and with the inspector general's office," Spiller said. "All this was done in November of last year. Since September 11 of last year, the officers have been off duty. They recently returned last week back to full service."
However, the FBI says its investigation is still open, and that it does not clear anybody of anything.
A spokesman for Cook County says the county inspector general did, in fact, clear the three officers involved in the incident with Augustin Sotomayor.
Karen Salasblancas, the daughter of Augustin Sotomayor, showed up at the Stroger police news conference to question, among other things, the fairness of the county inspector general's report. Salasblancas says the inspector general never talked to her family.
"That's completely untrue," she said. "How could it be fair?"
The way it stands now, because of the vote by the County Board, the Stroger Hospital Police Department's last day on the job is Sept. 1.
