Emanuel Defends High Price For New Chicago Police Advisor Charles Ramsey
(CBS) -- Mayor Rahm Emanuel is defending his hiring of a high-priced, former high-ranking Chicago Police official as the City's Police Department makes reforms after the Laquan McDonald shooting, reports WBBM Political Editor Craig Dellimore.
Mayor Emanuel justifies retired Philadelphia Police Commissioner Charles Ramsey's role as a $350 per hour consultant for police reform first because he says Ramsey is a national leader on community policing.
"Second, he's from Chicago and that gives him some credibility with the community, within the police department where you're going to drive some real important and essential change," Emanuel said. "Third, he has led the effort in the D.C. police department and in Philadelphia."
And he told reporters on the South Side both of those departments worked with the Justice Department on civil rights reforms, so his experience is valuable.
Ramsey's rate mirrors that of another high-powered city consultant, superlawyer Dan Webb, who's reviewing law department ethics after city attorneys hid evidence in a police shooting case. He's charging the city $295 an hour, a hometown discount to his usual fee of $1,335 an hour.
The mayor dismissed speculation that Ramsey may become the permanent top cop, as did Ramsey himself, when he spoke with CBS 2's Derrick Blakley on Sunday.