Chicago City Wire

After meeting at the White House on Tuesday to talk about gun violence, sanctuary cities, and “ambush style” attacks on law enforcement, Dean Angelo, president of the Chicago Fraternal Order of Police, told local radio hosts President Donald Trump demonstrates a lot of support for police work.

“He is very supportive of law enforcement," Angelo said Wednesday on The Morning Answer radio show. "He is very supportive of getting police officers to do their job."

Trump held talks Tuesday on gun violence, sanctuary cities, and “ambush style” attacks on law enforcement with Angelo, as well as Chuck Canterbury, national president for the Fraternal Order of Police, and seven other members of the organization.

Gun violence in Chicago claimed the lives of more than 760 people in 2016 – the highest rate in 20 years. That level of violence in one of America’s major cities caught Trump's attention on numerous occasions, and he called on Angelo to hear his experience policing in the city.

Angelo said people should stop pointing fingers at police officers and start going after guys who are out there with their weapons because every one of last year's 4,300-plus shootings could have easily turned into homicides. 

“A couple inches away from a shoulder shot can be a heart shot or a head shot,” Angelo said.

Attorney General Jeff Sessions has threatened to punish so-called sanctuary cities that do not assist federal immigration officials by withholding federal funding and that will hurt local law enforcement agencies according to Angelo who said, “We don’t want to see money that is earmarked for law enforcement to be diminished.”

Angelo said he's unsure of when Trump will help implement some of the solutions he and his colleagues shared but he said he thinks the number of gun violence crimes will decrease if offenders are charged on a federal level instead of at the state level. 

“Your uncle, your brother or your cousin that’s involved with gun play and gang warfare if he gets 15 years in the federal system, that’s going to send a message,” Angelo said.