"Kidnapped in Gaza" and "Murder in the Mountains" on Crime Beat Radio

On December 20th, Journalist David Aikman (www.davidaikman.com) discusses his new novel, Kidnapped in Gaza, and Michael Crisp, discusses his book, Murder in the Mountains on Crime Beat Radio.

Crime Beat is a weekly hour-long radio program that airs every Thursday at 8 p.m. EST., on the Artist First World Radio Network at artistfirst.com/crimebeat.

Crime Beat presents fascinating topics that bring listeners closer to the dynamic underbelly of the world of crime. Guests have included ex-mobsters, undercover law enforcement agents, sports officials, informants, prisoners, drug dealers and investigative journalists, who have provided insights and fresh information about the world’s most fascinating subject: crime.

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Reputed Mob Ties and Janitor Layoffs Have Chicago Aldermen Calling for O'Hare Maintenance Contract to be Rebid

Some Chicago aldermen said Tuesday that the city’s janitorial contract at O’Hare International Airport should be rebid, over concerns about the layoffs the contract would mean for union janitors, as well as the company’s ties to mob figures.

WBBM Newsradio Political Editor Craig Dellimore reports about 300 union custodians who work for Scrub, Inc., are being pushed out, after the Emanuel administration awarded a new janitorial contract at O’Hare to United Maintenance, a non-union firm.

“It’s just not right, like 10 days before Christmas, you give somebody a letter saying that they’re going to be laid off. It’s just not right,” said janitor Jermaine Samples.

The current janitors’ union, SEIU Local 1, has said the jobs the company is offering have much lower salaries, and fewer benefits. But the company said Tuesday it has offered jobs to roughly 380 people, including more than 100 current O’Hare custodians who have filled out job applications.

It claimed the health insurance, dental and vision coverage, and pension plans it will provide are superior to those workers’ current benefits. For example it said its health plan has no limit on medical claims, and covers 70 to 90 percent of the costs for out-of-network claims, while current O’Hare janitors have a $400,000 limit on claims, and no coverage for out-of-network claims.

United also said some Scrub, Inc., employees who have been hired will be making $2 to $4.60 more per hour.

The city has said United will work with the current custodians to find them jobs, but there are no guarantees those workers will keep their jobs, and if they did, it would most likely be for much lower pay and fewer benefits.

Ald. Rick Munoz (22nd) was incensed that many veteran custodians at O’Hare are being laid off so close to the holidays. “What’s going on over at O’Hare … socially is irresponsible, because these men and women who have been laboring day in and day out are being let go right before the holiday season, and being replaced by employees who make less,” Munoz said. “Are we in favor of the bottom line that simply saves money and rushes to the bottom, and races and pushes contractors to pay the lowest wage possible? Or are we looking at a bottom line that helps middle-class Chicago be a better Chicago?”

The switch in janitorial companies at O’Hare means no holiday for 7-year janitor Mildred Rueda. “I mean, I’m grateful because I do have my family, but as far as celebrating, there isn’t any,” Rueda said. But United Maintenance said in a news release Tuesday that neither Rueda nor Samples has applied for a job with the company.

Munoz and Ald. Scott Waguespack (32nd) are among a number of aldermen who have said the custodial contract at O’Hare should be rebid. “It’s not only very un-Chicagoan, but it’s very un-American to essentially bring in companies that decide that they’re going to cut wages in order to provide a more so-called efficient and fair contract,” Waguespack.

Aldermen have also raised concerns about the mob ties of some of top executives at the new custodial contractor.

Paul Fosco, the executive vice president of United Maintenance’s parent firm, United Service, served time in federal prison on mob racketeering charges, along with co-defendant and former Chicago mob boss Anthony Accardo. The Chicago Crime Commission has an entire file on Fosco. And United Maintenance owner Richard Simon was once business partners with reputed mob figure William Daddano, Jr.

“What we’ve seen is allegations about mob ties that is really unsettling for the people of Chicago, and for City Council members,” Waguespack said.

Mayor Rahm Emanuel has defended the contract with United Maintenance, saying it was competitively bid.

Thanks to CBS2.

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Chicago Police Commander Leo Schmitz Video with CBS National News

There is a war going on -- not overseas, but right here on the streets of America. A gang war has taken over parts of Chicago. Over the weekend, 14 people were shot. Two were killed.

So far this year, there have been more than 2,364 shootings and 487 homicides.

CBS News National Correspondent Dean Reynolds rode along with Commander Leo Schmitz of Chicago Police Department's 7th district. The area is a gang-related swath of the city's South Side. They started to drive as children were leaving school for the day.

"When you have them coming out of school, and there's any kind of gang conflicts, you've got a mix like fire and gasoline," Schmitz said. The gangs are fighting a war over turf, drugs and money. "It's crazy," he said. "What used to be a fist fight now turns into, 'Let's go to the guns,'" Schmitz said.

Shooting deaths are up 20 percent in the city this year, though in the 7th district Schmitz and his team have managed to cut homicides by 30 percent.

He credits better intelligence from informants, increased patrols and a citywide crime-tracking database. "We use the knowledge," Schmitz said. "So, if there's a shooting right here, we know that the retaliation will be a block down."

The police gave us a bulletproof vest for the trip, and within minutes it because crystal clear why. A block away, a man walking was a target. The suspect was fleeing the scene.

"He done shot at me right here!" the man said.

The commander and his men ran down the suspected shooter, 21-year-old Julian Gayles. Police think the shooting was probably gang-related.

The police also received the weapon. Schmitz described it as a 9mm Beretta. "If you can see the hammer's already (up)," he said. "That means he just shot it."

Chicago has seized more guns this year than New York and Los Angeles combined. The violence is so bad that the heavily armed police now attend gang funerals to prevent revenge killings. Schmitz said he doesn't just want to maintain a level of clam.

"I want to win," Schmitz said. "So, we're going to always try to do better than we did before."

It didn't get much better this weekend. Among the victims was an off-duty cop.

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Hate Crime Statistics Report for 2011 Released by FBI

In 2011, U.S. law enforcement agencies reported 6,222 hate crime incidents involving 7,254 offenses, according to the FBI's just-released Hate Crime Statistics, 2011 report. These incidents included offenses like vandalism, intimidation, assault, rape, murder, etc.

The data contained in this report, which is a subset of the information that law enforcement submits to the FBI’s Uniform Crime Reporting program, includes the following categories: offense type, location, bias motivation, victim type, number of individual victims, number of offenders, and race of offenders.

Highlights from the 2011 Report:

• Of the 6,222 reported hate crimes, 6,216 were single-bias incidents—46.9 percent were racially motivated, 20.8 percent resulted from sexual orientation bias, 19.8 percent were motivated by religious bias, 11.6 stemmed from ethnicity/national origin bias, and 0.9 percent were prompted by disability bias.
• Law enforcement agencies reported 7,713 victims of hate crime—victims can be individuals, businesses, institutions, or society as whole. Sixty percent of these 7,713 were victims of crimes against persons, while 39.8 were victims of crimes against property.
• Thirty-two percent of the 6,222 hate crime incidents reported took place in or near residences; 18 percent took place on highways, roads, and alleys; and 9.3 percent took place at schools or colleges. The remaining percentage took place at locations like houses of worship, parking lots, bars, government and office buildings, etc.

New in Hate Crime Reporting

Beginning in 2013, law enforcement agencies reporting hates crimes will be able to get even more specific when reporting bias motivation.

For example, the new bias categories of gender and gender identity—which added four new bias types—were added to the FBI’s hate crime data collection as a result of the Matthew Shepard and James Byrd, Jr., Hate Crimes Prevention Act. Other bias types were modified to comply with the race and ethnicity designations specified by the U.S. Office of Management and Budget. Data submitted under these new specifications will be part of the UCR program’s new system, scheduled to go online next year. (The 2013 crime data will be published in 2014).

FBI’s Role in Investigating Hate Crimes

Hate crimes continue to be the highest priority of the Bureau’s civil rights program because of their heinous nature and their impact on victims and communities (see sidebar for case examples). They investigate hate crimes that fall under federal jurisdiction, assist state and local authorities during their own investigations, and in some cases—with the U.S. Department of Justice Civil Rights Division—monitor developing situations to determine if federal action is appropriate.

In addition to responding to hate crimes, they’re also taking a proactive approach to hate crimes overall. They’re integrating a cadre of analysts with their experienced investigators to not only establish a national threat picture but to identify risk factors that can be used by FBI field offices to assess the potential for hate crimes at the local level.

Increasing Hate Crime Awareness

Most of all, they’re working to increase awareness of these crimes by establishing liaisons with civic and religious leaders and credible community organizations. Through their UCR program, they offer training to help law enforcement recognize hate crimes and also assist their partners in developing their own hate crimes training programs.

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Is Michael Spatero Innocent of Killing Mobster Joseph Campanella?

On December 13th, The case of Michael Spatero: A Miscarriage of Justice? Spatero was convicted of the killing of mobster Joseph Campanella but many people believe he is innocent. A discussion with investigator Mike Pizzi and members of the Spatero family takes place on Crime Beat Radio.

Crime Beat is a weekly hour-long radio program that airs every Thursday at 8 p.m. EST., on the Artist First World Radio Network at artistfirst.com/crimebeat.

Crime Beat presents fascinating topics that bring listeners closer to the dynamic underbelly of the world of crime. Guests have included ex-mobsters, undercover law enforcement agents, sports officials, informants, prisoners, drug dealers and investigative journalists, who have provided insights and fresh information about the world’s most fascinating subject: crime.

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