Security

Even though the city is no longer hosting the more controversial G-8 conference, Chicago still expects about 7,500 protesters during the NATO summit in May. Those protests have the Chicago Police Department on alert, spending the past few months training and acquiring new riot gear.

According to the Chicago Tribune, about 8,400 of CPD’s 12,000 officers have gone through some form of crowd-control training, and 2,400 tactical and gang officers have completed front line crowd-control training. 

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The CPD’s tactical officers are getting a five-day training course specially designed for “front and center” officers during the summit. CPD also sent officers to a Department of Homeland Security facility to be trained as crowd-control instructors; those officers will teach thousands more in a three-day crowd-control course.

Front line officers will be outfitted with new face shields that will fit over their gas masks, creating an airtight seal to prevent liquids from blinding the officers. CPD horses will also be given new riot gear, including visors, leg shields and nose guards. So far, the city has spent about $1 million on the face shields in a no-bid contract funded by a federal grant.

The city is also tapping police from surrounding suburbs to help during the summit, and it has the power to deputize police from other states for the event. But according to ABC, some suburban police are not planning to send officers to the city because they are too concerned about their own safety.

But despite the city’s assurances that police are prepared, police union president Michael Shields says some of the training, namely a flip booklet of hand signals to be used during crowd-control, is confusing. He also said there is a potential for police action during the summits to cost the city millions, referencing a $6.2 million settlement brought by people arrested during a 2003 Iraq War protest.

That would be on top of the $40-65 million the city expects to pay for security and other expenses during the summit. It had pledged that the federal government’s national security fund would cover that cost, but whether that fund will cover the entire cost will only be known after the summits.

Two to four weeks before the summit, Secret Service are expected to disclose the city’s security perimeter during the summit, which will be held at McCormick Place. To help businesses prepare for the summit, the city is holding weekly meetings with business leaders and a private security firm. They say employees will be able to get to work near secure areas and that public transit will not be interrupted. But several Chicago businesses have already sought help from their own security firms to ensure their employees can get to work. 

The security zone will extend to Chicago’s waterways, giving the Coast Guard the power to shut down the downtown portions of the Chicago River, Navy Pier, and areas of Lake Michigan within 2,000 yards of Burnham Harbor and the Chicago Lock. Barring dignitaries passing on an overhead bridge, however, the Coast Guard says most waterways will remain open, and the city has encouraged boat tours to run during the summit to “showcase” the city.

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