A Trustee Candidate that doesn't want to fully fund the Police...

Recently here in the Skokie Patch, we have seen articles that refer to James Johnson's Independent candidacy for Skokie Village Trustee.

Mr. Johnson's positions on sustainability and "climate change", of which he mentions as being the "most pressing issue" facing Skokie, are certainly topical and cannot be dismissed in today's political environment. If those issues are more credible than those of Community Development (especially coming out of a prolonged COVID shutdown), being fiscally responsible with taxpayer dollars, or any other numerous concerns facing Village Government, are for the voters to decide.

One issue that would seem to be non-negotiable for a Trustee would be to fully fund Skokie's "first responders". Perhaps you have seen comments in a Patch article that spotlight Mr. Johnson, accusations of his not wanting to fund the Police and other related remarks. These are indeed serious allegations to be made against someone who aspires to become a Village Trustee, and certainly deserve to be examined for their veracity.

Unfortunately, it appears that James Johnson has shown where his true feelings lie when it comes to fully funding the Skokie Police and their needs to effectively protect the Citizens of Skokie.

The November 16, 2020 Skokie Board Meeting, which is readily available on YouTube, displays James Johnson's unwillingness to fund the Police. Specifically, asking Trustees to "vote against" a request for 18 new lifesaving bulletproof vests for our officers, replacing older ones that have become increasingly obsolete and unsafe to the wearer. One can view the the matter in question between minutes 55 through 58 in the video. In it, you will see that James Johnson was the Only Skokie Resident to comment Against this purchase of lifesaving equipment for our officers.

G_d forbid, if there's ever an active shooter situation in Skokie, the last thing we should want to happen is for an Officer to think twice about responding accordingly since he's worried for his safety due to an expired vest that he's being forced to wear. And if that Officer was performing his sworn duty regardless, and paid the Ultimate Sacrifice because of it, would James Johnson go and console the family of that officer who was slain due to that expired vest that he refused to replace?

We see the ever increasing instances of violence against the Police, especially in Chicago. The death of Commander Paul Bauer and the 20 Chicago Police Officers that have been fired upon in 2021 to date (per an ABC7 story earlier this month) are perfect examples of this violence against the Police. In light of this, it's also Extremely Unfortunate that Any Elected Official would endorse Johnson. Skokie Trustees Ulrich and Roberts were Both Right There as participants in the Village's Zoom meeting when the Village Manager read Johnson's comment into the record that spoke out Against the purchase of the vests (Ulrich is even on record as Seconding the motion for approval on the purchase). Yet, in a Patch article posted just yesterday, they Endorsed Johnson? We don't know of the circumstances surrounding the reasons behind Trustees Ulrich and Roberts not appearing on next month's ballot. But in light of these irrefutable facts, how can they Endorse a Trustee candidate that doesn't want to fully fund the very Police Officers that have been sworn to protect the citizenry for whom they are dependent for funding in order to fulfill those obligations?

In closing, pasted below is the link to the video showing the issue in question.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=76R4UXZeLzw&list=PLO-_svpah1tVVXAT4drOUvSQwtFw5BgcS&index=9