As the city struggles with a crippling budget crisis, Acting Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy is proposing to set up a police foundation that would raise money from private sources to support the Chicago Police Department.
McCarthy broached the idea Thursday during a meeting with representatives of foundations and businesses, but didn’t explicitly ask them for donations. Joyce Foundation President Ellen Alberding said she wasn’t surprised McCarthy raised the possibility during a broad discussion of police strategies. The Chicago Public Schools have a similar foundation, she said.
Earlier this month, McCarthy was hired from Newark where he was the police director. Before that, he was the head of crime strategy for the New York Police Department, which has been supported by a police foundation since 1971. The New York City Police Foundation bought the city’s officers their first bulletproof vests. Over the years, it has raised more than $100 million for over 400 programs, according to its website.
“It’s critical in these times that we look for alternative funding for things that might be cut,’’ said McCarthy, who pointed to new technology as an example of something they could raise money for.
This is also interesting:
- [...] And it enforces the department’s valuable trademarks, including the letters NYPD and the NYPD shield logo. The foundation created a licensing program for the trademarks to provide revenue for the NYPD.