CHICAGO POLICE DEPARTMENT 4TH DISTRICT COMMANDER TALKS ABOUT POLICING
Lt. Robert Rubio is the Commander of the 4th District, which encompasses the South Chicago area. He has been in the Chicago Police Department for 26 years. Photo courtesy of the Chicago Police Department
Chicago Police Department Commander Robert Rubio was assigned to the 4th District, which covers the South Chicago community, in late January.
Rubio has been in the Chicago Police Department for 26 years. Rubio has made some changes in the last eight months. One of those changes is in leadership for the district’s tactical team, in regards to the tactical lieutenant’s position. He said he wanted to bring his philosophy in when it comes
to policing which includes the district’s officers being more engaged in the community and directing resources where it
is most needed because there has been an uptick in violence.
Rubio said his philosophy involves working well with the community. “I hear the community. I know what it’s like to work with the community. I know that we can’t get the job done. We can’t be successful unless we have that bond between the community and officers, them providing us with information and directing us in the right direction,” he said.
Rubio was the commanding officer of the Area Central Gang Enforcement and Saturation unit, and he served as a
Tactical Lieutenant in the 19th District.
He said those two positions helped prepare him to serve as commander of the 4th District based on the sheer number
of officers he supervised during those times. He said the previous experience also helped him to administratively handle the amount of officers he has now as commander.
“But also, being a commanding officer of area central gangs, I worked the gang aspect as well and I learned how to direct my resources where resources should go.
When I see an area that may experience an uptick in violence, we’ll send our resources there,” he said.
Rubio added, as the tactical lieutenant, because on a smaller scale, at the district level, you get different community concerns and he learned to direct the resources to the needs of the community.
Rubio said he believes he was chosen to lead the 4th district because of his experience. He has experience as a gang officer and building trust with the community, as well as his experience as an instructor and working as a sergeant on the robbery, burglary and theft team.
Rubio said while there is a pandemic, policing is done cautiously where there’s social distancing. He said during the
social, racial and civil unrest, the most important part is to ensure people are able to exercise their first amendment rights safely and where the public is not in jeopardy.
“Public safety is key for us, sanctity of life is key for us. I think those things as far as officers, are priority for them and
while we’re doing that, we try our best to ensure that there’s no harm coming to the public or the protestors,” he said.
* Empower and heal people by expanding
access to jobs and housing
* Protect and secure places by investing
in place-based programming and
services, and revitalizing neighborhood
economies through initiatives like INVEST
South/West
* Improve and advance policing by acknowledging
past harms and implementing
new police reforms at every level
* Affect public policy by collaborating
with state and county partners in regards
to public safety, violence prevention,
with a focus on criminal justice reform
and gun regulation and;
* Plan and coordinate by coordinating
with city departments, sister agencies,
as well as private and community-based
organizations.
“I think it’s an excellent plan. That plan hits on a lot of points, the five pillars. Some of the key things is that plan
provides social needs of the community, diversionary programs, which is key, socioeconomic help, which is key,” Rubio said. “Our officers are already CIT (Crisis Intervention Team) trained, when we deal with mental health issues and just enhances those type of programs. It also enhances the cooperation between the departments. We got all our department services communicating with each other and we’re able to immediately address issues that are of concern for the community.”
Stacey Jones, a Cook County Probation Officer and mother of two, was shot and killed outside her Jeffery Manor
home. Rubio said because the investigation is ongoing, the detective division is following up.
Rubio said to reduce gun violence in the city and in the district, it is going to take police officers working with the
community and providing opportunities for young people to be engaged in the community.
“When you’re able to provide proper direction for individuals and communication with the community and the information, I think all of that as a whole will downturn any type of violence,
especially gun violence,” he said.
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