(UUc,
Call for hearing(s) on Norfolk Southern Corporation Railroad Boxcars Thefts and the Norfolk Southern Railroad Police Division Strategies & Operations
WHEREAS, the Norfolk Southern Railway is classified as a Class 1 railroad in the United States and is owned by the Norfolk Southern Corporation; and
WHEREAS, the Norfolk Southern Railway is responsible for carrying commodities across 22 states along its 22,000 route miles; and
WHEREAS, the State of Illinois is one (1) of eleven (11) Regional Divisions for Norfolk Southern Railway with trains operating along its City of Chicago corridor, which expands about 150 miles and is a passageway connecting the Norfolk Southern Railroad from Chicago directly to neighboring Midwestern States; and
WHEREAS, the Norfolk Southern Railway could carry any cargo that ships by rail to destinations and retailers across the nation, including the shipment of firearms, which could be transported through the City of Chicago to reach licensed Firearm retailers in other states; and
WHEREAS, on May 24th 2015, the Chicago Police Department released a bulletin stating Norfolk Southern Railroad Police reported to Chicago Police 004th District personnel a theft of one-hundred and eleven (111) firearms taken from one of its railroad boxcars located on a train in the South Chicago neighborhood on April 12th 2015; and
WHEREAS, the weapons stolen from the railroad boxcar included .44 caliber revolvers, .357 caliber revolvers and .22 caliber pistol grip long rifles of which, according to the May 24th bulletin, four of the .22 caliber pistol grip long rifles were recovered in the 007th (Englewood) and 0019th (Town Hall) Districts as of May 24th, 2015; and
WHEREAS, in addition to the theft on April 24th 2015, previously, in May of 2014, the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) in conjunction with the Chicago Police Department investigated the theft of thirteen (13) Smith & Wesson M&P Sport Rifles from a Norfolk Southern railroad boxcar parked in a Chicago rail yard in the Englewood Community; and
WHEREAS, the members of the Norfolk Southern Railroad Police Division are tasked with securing the railroad boxcars and due to the presence of firearms carried on the freights, Norfolk South Railroad Police Division is also responsible for protecting the well-being of Chicagoans by ensuring that the commodities—more specifically, firearms—are transported without being placed in the wrong hands; and
WHEREAS, there are uninformed citizens and communities of Chicago who may be affected by the transfer of these guns into their areas due to a lack of information regarding the investigation by Norfolk Southern Police Division; and
WHEREAS, the City of Chicago and communities across the nation-have been plagued by gun violence and the loss of innocent lives; and
WHEREAS, there is a rising concern across the nation of high-powered firearms entering into urban communities without a trace, thus owners of loss, stolen, undocumented and illegal guns are unaccountable for the use of said firearm; and
WHEREAS, the Chicago Tribune reported that more than four thousand eighty two (4,082) people have been victims of gun violence in the City of Chicago from January 1st, 2014 to July 22nd, 2015; and
WHEREAS, the Chicago Police Department reported seizing over 6,000 illegal guns in 2013 and 2014 year—with 2015 numbers seeming to reach the same tally; and
WHEREAS, this high number of seizures emphasizes the need for elected officials, corporations and constituents of the City of Chicago to monitor, report and police loss, stolen, undocumented and illegal guns; now
THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, That we, the Mayor and the City Council of the City of Chicago hereby assembled on this the 29th day of July, 2015, do hereby direct the Committee on Public Safety to call to hold a hearing(s) on the matter described herein with Norfolk Southern Corporation and the Norfolk Southern Railroad Police Division with a view toward understanding the policy and procedural plans established to prevent and address the theft of weapons from its freights and encourage Norfolk Southern Police Division to accurately and promptly alert citizens of the City of Chicago when a theft of a weapon has occurred.