It’s looks pretty bad when a 14 year old boy can walk into a police department in a uniform without a badge on, get assigned to a beat and then ride around with a ‘partner’ for four hours before they figure out he’s not a cop. Worse yet, he’s not even an adult.
A 14-year-old boy accused of impersonating a police officer and going on patrol has pleaded not guilty. The teenager appeared in a juvenile courtroom on Monday with his hands cuffed behind his back. A judge ordered that he be held at the juvenile center because he could pose a danger to himself.
On Saturday the teen, wearing an officer’s uniform, walked into a police station and was assigned to go on patrol. He partnered with another officer for about five hours before the ruse was discovered.
The boy did not have a gun, never issued any tickets and didn’t drive the squad car. Deputy Superintendent Daniel Dugan said the boy looks older than 14 and was motivated by a desire to be an officer, not malice or “ill intent.”
The worst part of this whole story is that this little incident could keep him from being able to become a police officer. Wouldn’t that be a shame? I think so. It sure doesn’t say much for the Chicago Police Department that it took them 5 hours to realize he wasn’t even a Police Officer, does it?
The boy once took part in a Chicago program for youth interested in policing, so he would have been familiar with some procedures, perhaps helping him blend in, police spokeswoman Monique Bond said.
The Rev. Roosevelt Watkins said the boy had lived with him for much of the past year and is fascinated by police work.