Welcome to the Reader‘s morning briefing for Tuesday, September 6, 2016.
- Weather: Humid, warm, and sunny
It will be warm and humid again Tuesday, with a high of 88 and a low of 76. Make sure you stay hydrated, because it might feel as hot as 99 degrees. [AccuWeather]
- Alderman: Rahm to hire hundreds of new cops to fight gang violence
Mayor Rahm Emanuel wants to put more cops on the street to fight the rise in violent crime. The Chicago Police Department will hire hundreds of new cops, according to 40th Ward alderman Pat O’Connor. CPD has been paying officers excessive overtime to make up for the cop shortage. “It’s less of a change in strategy and more of a response to this incredible streak of gun violence,” O’Connor, who serves as Emanuel’s City Council floor leader, told the Sun-Times. “By doing this, we hope to begin to get control of the gun violence that seems to grow all the time.” [Sun-Times]
- Two cops could be fired for March 2006 beating caught on camera
Two Chicago police officers could be fired for an off-duty beating that took place in March 2006 after an appeals court upheld their firings by the Chicago Police Board. The board’s dismissal of Jason Orsa and Brian Murphy for the beating of Obed “OJ” DeLeon at a restaurant was overturned by a Cook County judge. But an Illinois appeals court ruled in the police board’s favor, calling the county judge’s decision “inexplicable.” “It’s pushed under the table, and here we are ten years later (and) these guys are still on the Police Department,” an eyewitness to the beating, Joseph Mularczyk, told the Tribune. [Tribune]
- Chicago Public Schools graduation rates improved in 2016
Nearly three-quarters of ninth-graders in Chicago Public Schools go on to earn a high school diploma within five years, according to new data from CPS. The graduation rate increased for the class of 2016, and about 1,400 more students graduated from high school in 2016 than in 2015. Improvements at neighborhood schools were the reason for the increase, according to CPS chief education officer Janice Jackson. [Sun-Times]
- Disturbing new information emerges in the Derrick Rose alleged gang-rape case
The civil suit filed against former Bulls star and south-side native Derrick Rose and two of his friends by a former girlfriend for an alleged gang rape hasn’t gotten much attention until now. About a month before the case heads to trial, new details have come out about the alleged incident, and it’s an interesting glimpse into society’s stereotypes about sexual assault, especially involving professional athletes. [Think Progress]
- Dwyane Wade slams “weak gun laws” in Chicago after cousin’s murder
The murder of his cousin Nykea Aldridge became national news in August. Now Bulls star Dwyane Wade wants the city to bring back its strict gun laws to help stop the violence, he said in an interview with ABC News. “My purpose for being back in the city is bigger than basketball,” he said. “Basketball is a big part of it, of course. It’s what I do for a living. But I think my purpose at the end of the day is hopefully to come to Chicago and be a part and be the voice that can help bring people together.” [New York Times]