Chicago, IL —In February of 2005 off duty railroad cop Howard Morgan was shot by Chicago police officers at least 25 times.  Somehow Morgan miraculously survived but currently sits convicted in an Illinois prison for many more years than he has left on this earth. I wrote about this strange case when it happened. There are still many more questions than answers.  Something awful happened during that traffic stop in the Lawndale neighborhood that led to a horrific firefight. Chicago police officials could not seem to find a motive for their claim of Morgan’s attack on their officers.   The only thing that ever made sense to me was a sudden misunderstanding that provoked the firefight. I don’t for a second accept the idea Morgan simply went from law-abiding citizen and former Chicago cop, to a railroad policeman and then finally became a mad dog killer. This case never made sense to me.   It needs to be reinvestigated and I want the job. ...

Chicago, IL —Some seven years ago on February 21, 2005, Howard Morgan wound up in a gunfight with several cops that he lost in a big way. When it was over Morgan was shot 25 times. What’s amazing is that he lived. Three of the patrol officers were also wounded, presumably by Morgan who was a lawfully armed off duty railroad cop. Morgan previously served asa Chicago cop. I really have no problem with the amount of times Morgan was shot considering the ineffectiveness of the 9MM round the patrol officers were using. The incident reportedly began when Morgan was observed driving without headlights around 1:00 AM in an area known for drugs and vice activities. The big mystery here to me was a motive for Morgan to start shooting. I’m still waiting to hear one. Perhaps we will never know. The Howard Morgan gunfight was followed with all kinds of racial profiling accusations. This seems to be a case of Morgan being the only clear defense witness being outnumbered by at least four patro...

Police work is dangerous. Life and death decisions must be made in split seconds. Survival dictates that if cops error they do so on the side of self-protection at the expense of suspected offenders. There are no second place winners in gunfights. We are an unforgiving society when our cops make mistakes involving their own survival. An error on the side of survival can sometimes cause a good cop to be disgraced, fired and even imprisoned. Political or racial overtones sometimes can set justice aside and destroy the lives of honorable cops. Cops by their basic nature are the good guys. They chose a life where they can protect their friends and neighbors from harm. Background checks before hiring and a strict program of observation during training and a probationary period work to insure only the good guys can wear the police star. No matter what view you take of this case, it’s as ugly as ugly can get. It’s a story about a deadly battle between who we like to call, the good guys. It al...