Chicago police officer Enrique Martinez, 26, was shot to death during a traffic stop on Monday night. After officers approached a vehicle with three passengers, one person opened fire on Martinez, striking him multiple times. He was pronounced dead at the University of Chicago Medical Center.
Martinez would’ve celebrated his third anniversary as a cop this December. He was a “hero” who was “working to make this city safer,” the Fraternal Order of Police said on social media. He had “his whole life ahead.”
“This tragic loss cuts deep, the wound is severe,” Mayor Brandon Johnson said. “The only way we’ll get through this tragic loss is if we put our arms around one another and recognize the value, the bravery of our police department, who put their lives on the line for us every day.”
There’s a lot to remember on Election Day, certainly for those of us who live in Washington, D.C., as well as for those of us who are even remotely politically inclined. Fearmongers worry that this will be America’s last election, that all is lost no matter who wins, and that America’s soul is in jeopardy. Many things make this country great, and many things could make it better. But it’s quite a humbling reminder to remember how many people, like Martinez, defend this country and put themselves in harm’s way so that we might live, pray, vote, and work safely — especially on a day like today, when the temptation is to agonize over America’s future.
Tragedies like these also remind us the importance of local and statewide politics. One of the suspects in the vehicle was under electronic monitoring and may have cut off his ankle monitor; “In this city, it’s just the status quo. Again, they are allowed to do whatever they want to do and you continue to make excuses,” Fraternal Order of Police president John Catanzara said. Uber-progressive policies in Chicago don’t protect citizens or cops, and they don’t allow police to do their jobs without fear. Chicago has been facing a murder crisis for a while, and violent crime in the city has risen for years, yet arrests by police declined 83 percent between 2006 and 2021. Mayor Johnson loudly opposed ShotSpotter this year, a program that detects gunshots in wards, and alerts authorities to the proper locations. Police have been able to confiscate more guns, and help more gunshot victims, with the program, which Johnson called “walkie-talkies on a stick.” The mayor also made a campaign promise to add 200 more detectives to the squad this year. Only two more detectives have been added since Johnson took office in May 2023, according to local media, which reviewed data from the from city’s inspector general. Johnson can mourn for fallen officers, but what he could’ve done long ago is offered police officers tangible support.