On April 10, 2009 Fausto Manzera (Afro) and Andrew Cazares (Evol) were killed by an off-duty Chicago police officer.  Our thoughts are with their families, friends, and loved ones.  We only knew Afro and Evol through their art, which we found to be inspiring and inventive.  From everything being said in various articles, these two young men were loyal friends with great lives ahead of them.  Unfortunately, these lives were cut short by Officer Joseph Frugoli, off-duty and off the wagon. Frugoli blew a 0.24 BAC, though only after he was apprehended several blocks away from the fiery crash.
About a year and a half ago two acquaintances of Afro and Evol’s were also killed - also by an allegedly drunk off-duty police officer.  Officer John Ardelean is facing charges of reckless homicide and aggravated DUI in the deaths of Miquel Flores and Erick Lagunas. http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/30211042/

Perhaps instead of six degrees of seperation or six degrees of Kevin Bacon, Chicago residents should play six degrees of DUI policemen.

According to Police Supt. Jody Weis he’s serious about cracking down on officers who get behind the wheel drunk.  (Weis took office early last year after the Daley administration was embarrassed by a series of scandals stemming from cops allegedly misbehaving in bars.) http://www.suntimes.com/news/metro/1524623,weis-crackdown-cops-drive-drunk-041309.article

Let’s hope Weis is not ‘politics as usual’ and does actually improve the quality and discipline of CPD.  Restore integrity amongst the boys in blue.  He could start by holding police officers to the same standards set for anyone with a CDL - anyone with a CDL license that tests at 0.04 or higher (half the legal limit) loses their CDL license (and effectively their jobs) for one year.  It’s time to do away with the tired Orwellian concept that ‘all men are created equal but some of us are far more equal than others.’

- spiderpig