ABC7 has an article about an alleged assault of two CFD paramedics and a CPD officer:
Two paramedics and a Chicago police officer were injured when prosecutors say the man they were called to help assaulted them Tuesday night in the city’s River North neighborhood.
All three … were sent to the hospital. The suspect was sent to court. None of the injuries were life threatening. The paramedics and police officer were released Tuesday night. The suspect, who was treated for injuries as well, was in court Wednesday. Also in court were fellow paramedics and firefighters frustrated by violence first responders sometimes face.
A call for [an] injured man came from this block Tuesday evening on North LaSalle. Two Chicago paramedics responded. They were evaluating him and they say something happened.
“It was an average run and nothing out of the ordinary. It’s almost like flipped a switch and the gentleman became combative and that was the result three people hospitalized,” said Asst. Deputy Chief Jeff Larson, Chicago Fire Department.
The 28-year-old delivery driver from Indiana appeared in court Wednesday. Joseph Zajac is charged with aggravated battery of the paramedics and a Chicago police officer.
Prosecutor said Zajac hit a 63-year-old paramedic and a Chicago police officer who responded to help the paramedics. The second paramedic was injured. Prosecutors say she ended up with a concussion.
“They are sore, they are beaten up. And they’re exhausted at this point. All they want to do is get some rest and be with their family,” said Tom Ryan, president, Chicago Firefighters Union.
The president of the union representing the paramedics says he’s gone to court five times in just two weeks for suspects charged with assaulting paramedics on the job.
“This is insanity, this should never happen, much less with the frequency that it is happening and I hope the citizens of this city are as outraged as we are,” said Ryan.
In the last two years in Cook County, more than sixty people have been charged for assaulting a paramedic.
#1 by Bill Post on December 10, 2013 - 11:37 PM
Tom Sullivan you are correct that the original Ambulances 41 and 42 were painted white with an Orange stripe and they ran them the first several months after they were put in service a BLS units until they finally had become ALS in 1975. The white over orange ambulances were then reassigned a few months later to new Ambulance companies 44 and 45 and I know that at least the one the was reassigned to Ambulance 45 was repainted White over Red like the other newer Ambulances were being delivered. Ambulance 44’s rig may have also been eventually repainted as well.
#2 by Bill Post on December 10, 2013 - 11:26 PM
Drew Smith that wasn’t folk lore.During the early 1970’s when Commissioner Quinn was questioned by a News Paper Reporter as to why the Chicago fire department didn’t have Paramedic ambulances which some other fire departments were already starting to use he said to the effect and this is pretty close to what he was reported to have said referring to his Cadillac Ambulances , when I go out of this world I want to do it in style, not in some meat wagon while some people (paramedics) are trying to put electrodes on me.
This might not be exactly word for word however he said most of it. The second half when talks about the electrodes he may have said it in this context when defending his Cadillac ambulances compared to Paramedic Vans he said something to effect of when inquired . Are you kidding ,people will be dying in the streets while the paramedics are trying to put electrodes on them , when I leave this world I want to go out in style.
Either way those are the two phrases that were attributed to him. the real question as far as I’m concerned is the
order in which he used that terminology or phrases.
That was in the papers ,it may have been in the Daily News but I’m not 100% sure. It was some where around 1972 give or take a year. Shortly after Fire Commissioner Quinn was quoted saying comparing his Cadillac Ambulance to Paramedic service , Mayor Richard J Daley (the original Mayor Daley) had announced plans for a fleet to 50 Paramedic Ambulances for the city. At the time Chicago only was running with about 34 Ambulances. The Chicago Fire Department didn’t reach Mayor Richard J Daley’s goal of 50 Paramedic Ambulances until May 18th 1987 which was the day that Ambulances 50 through 53 were put in service. That was about 15 years after Mayor Richard J Daley had mentioned his plan for 50 ambulances.
#3 by Chuck on December 10, 2013 - 9:48 PM
You will never, EVER see armed paramedics in Chicago. Legally. I did know of at least two individuals who carried firearms on the ambulance when I was on the job. This will not be an issue or a priority for the City until a medic is killed, and all that will happen then is a fancy funeral. They just don’t care.
#4 by Drew Smith on December 10, 2013 - 8:36 PM
I also recall a quote attributed to Commissioner Quinn, to paraphrase “I prefer the Cadillac for an ambulance due to its smooth ride and that everyone should get that treatment” or something like that. Maybe just folklore.
#5 by tom sullivan on December 10, 2013 - 7:23 PM
cfd’s shift to als ambulance service was a “work in progress” through out the 1970’s. there was a steep learning curve for all involved. adminstration, technical, operations, socially, etc. many stories could be told of making do and improvising as they went. as you show just keeping the ambulance co. numbers straight was tough with out a scorecard. I recall (correctly I hope!) that a-41 & a-42 went in als service with leased vehicles that were painted orange & white.
the “new” amb. 7 and maybe 11 & 21, were put in temporary service during the big blizzard of jan. 1979. like most temporary things they quickly became permanent.
the use of bttn. chiefs to take in ems calls was a poor decision from the beginning. while it made for some very interesting responses, the level of service to the public was hit or miss, depending on a lot of variables, particularly the skill and attitude of the chief and his driver ! of course it was better than a ride in the back of a “paddy wagon” !
#6 by Bill Post on December 10, 2013 - 3:11 AM
Drew one of the first of the new ALS ambulances that were put in service after the new 6 new 40 series units was Ambulance 39 at Engine 119’s house on the far northwest side and Ambulance 47 was also a new ALS unit and that was in 1975. At the same time Ambulance 27 was put in service as an new ALS unit on the far southwest side at Engine 64’s station. Ambulance 26 was at O”Hare Field was also put in service in 1974 and would also become an ALS unit. Ambulance 26 had actually been put in service in 1972 however it was originally designated as Ambulance 16 A. During 1979 Ambulances 7, 11 and 21 were put back in service as ALS paramedic ambulances. By the end of 1979 Chicago was operating 39 Ambulances. But as I had previously mentioned the Paramedic service being confined to the far northwest side didn’t really last very long as in 1975 the ALS program was going in service in other areas of the city and by the end of 1978, 22 of about 36 ambulances were already ALS units.
#7 by Bill Post on December 10, 2013 - 2:46 AM
Yes Drew, the very first Chicago Fire ambulance that had operational “Paramedic” service was Ambulance 16 at O”Hare Field and that service had begun before the first of the Modular Ambulances were delivered and put in service for “City based” Ambulances in 1974. Even though the first Van Style “type 1” Ambulances were put in service in the summer of 1974 at “new” Ambulances 41 and 42. The first of the “city located Ambulances didn’t officially become ALS (Advanced Life Support) until early 1975. Ambulance 16 at OHare Field was already functioning as an ALS Paramedic Ambulance before that by at least a year or more. They were actually Chicago’s pilot program or “prototype” Paramedic ambulance and were probably associated with the Paramedic Program at Northwest community hospital as that was Illinois original Paramedic program.
The first of the city based “Paramedic ambulances were Ambulances 41,42,43,44,45 and 47.Those ambulances while technically being new had actually replaced Ambulances 1,21,11,24,2 and 7. That renumbering of the ambulances didn’t last long however and after that when they put ALS ambulances in service that kept them using their old numbers and not changing them. By 1979 22 of Chicago’s Ambulances were ALS and within another few years all of them would be ALS. The first Chicago Hospitals that were part of the Paramedic program was Resurrection (for O”Hare Field and the far northwest side) Illinois Masonic, Northwestern Memorial and Billings.
Despite the fact the Chicago Fire Department was already running with some modular and ALS ambulances in the late 70’s the Chicago Police was still using their Patrol Wagons as ambulances at the time.
In 1958 the Chicago FIre Department under FIre Commissioner Robert J Quinn had converted all of it’s Battalion Chief vehicles from Sedans to station wagons and they were all equipped with collapsible metal frame stretchers and first aid kit’s however they weren’t equipped with “inhalators and oxygen” so the Battalion Chiefs were only sent on accident and person injured runs when the nearest Ambulance wasn’t available. Beginning in 1967 and after the Battalion Chiefs were equipped with inhalators so they could respond to “heart attacks and strokes as well as drownings and other respiratory problems. It wasn’t until in the 1980’s that the city began to really crack down on the Police using their Patrol Wagons as ambulances.
#8 by Drew Smith on December 9, 2013 - 11:10 PM
Bill, I remember back in the late 70s or very early 80s when a local TV station did a piece on the squadrols making removals. The focus was on how the living were placed on the same litter as a recent DOA and then set on the floor of the wagon where there may have been blood or vomit not yet cleaned up. I also recall that the police rarely accompanied the patient in the rear.
When CFD decided to begin ALS it was originally confined to the NW side where Resurrection Hospital provided medical direction as part of the NW Community EMS System. I believe there were five ambulances with paramedics around 74-78. Many of the early paramedic came from volunteers or POCs from suburban FDs. I had the pleasure to know some of those men who either went on to become firemen with the CFD or full time with suburban departments.
#9 by NJ on December 9, 2013 - 9:06 AM
There’s always “O2” therapy, and in tense situations the D Tank is often close by, but it is not a great means of defense.
Arming Medics is a catch 22. Arm them and they become like the cops to many people and they will be looked at as the enemy. This puts them in more danger.
I do think they should strongly consider pepper spray and the like for CFD personnel.
#10 by tom sullivan on December 9, 2013 - 8:07 AM
threats and assaults on cfd paramedics , and ffs, have been happening for many decades. it may be that recently there is a spike in them, particularly in areas that don’t have a high number of attacks. cfd members have been threatened verbally with words like, “if that boy dies, ya’ll are gona die too !”. attempts to break into or roll over ambulances have occurred. amb 10 once called for a 10-1 and fire response to lake & Pulaski when they were being swarmed and almost over on 2 wheels. e-95 & t-26 responded from their quarters, a block away and the members had to drive off the crowd using “tools available”.
being hit with rocks and bottles and gunshots has been around since the 1960’s. the problem was particularly severe when the high rise projects were up. police response to ems (& fire) calls is erratic, depending on time of day / night and call volume. a particular trouble time is at change of shifts for police, it sometimes takes several calls for police to respond. even when police are on the scene, incidents still occur.
#11 by Bill Post on December 9, 2013 - 4:28 AM
It’s ironic but “back in the day” in Chicago, a Police Wagon which here was officially called a “Squadrol” was normally dispatched on many of the EMS runs along with an ambulance. That was no guarantee that they would arrive on the scene quickly however. That policy had gone way way back however as before 1972 Chicago fire department ambulances weren’t allowed to remove patients from private residences. A private ambulance would have to be called or a doctor would sometimes release the fire department from the scene and strange as it may seem the Police Wagons were allowed to make “sick removals” from private residences in their “Wagons” despite the fact that they carried no oxygen or resuscitator on board and the stretcher was a collapsible canvas and metal framed cot which the patient needed to be carried out on as opposed to a conventional wheeled gurney that the ambulances had on them. The Police Wagons were mainly designed for prisoner removal however they were also used for removing DOAS ( dead on arrivals) from the scene and were often used for ambulance duty as well.
The Chicago fire department ambulance service only started (for the public) in 1946 and even then they only made patient removals from public places.
I understand that if the patient was left out side the residence or apartment door then the Fire Department ambulances were technically allowed to remove the patient to the hospital.
In 1970 eight separate ambulances funded by the Federal “Model Cities” program but run from Chicago fire stations were allowed to make “home removals” from their designated model cities areas and two years later the City Council had changed the rules allowing all of the official Chicago Fire Department (Cadillac ambulances) make patient removals from private residences city wide and the model cities ( numbers 31 through 38) ambulances were officially absorbed into the Chicago Fire Department.
I know that the police are dispatched to accidents and domestic disturbances and crimes of course but am not sure if they still get dispatched to peoples residences on “inhalator”( heart attack , stroke) and sick calls any more unless they are requested ?
#12 by Bob on December 8, 2013 - 11:29 PM
Not in Chicago. They have nothing but a radio to request police assistance. With the Illinois Conceal Carry about to go into effect early next year, we will see where the CFD goes, although I’m sure a General Order will be put out prohibiting uniformed members on duty from possessing a firearm, for liability issues. With all the media attention lately bringing awareness to members being attacked, it doesn’t sound to shabby to equip members with less than lethal options: Tasers, OC spray, etc.
#13 by John H on December 8, 2013 - 7:03 PM
Serious question: are FF/PMs ever armed? With either lethal or less than lethal force options (in any jurisdiction that anyone is aware of)? Seems reasonable for FFs to at least have access to stun guns and the like…police officers aren’t always around to ensure safety.
#14 by Bob on December 8, 2013 - 6:36 PM
An Ambulance on a run on the West Side w/ Engine 96 requested a 10-1 today. For those who are not aware, a 10-1 is a CPD emergency call for help. These Paramedics are getting attacked daily.