‘Chicago P.D.’ boss Dick Wolf says shows will tackle police shootings

Promising his shows “Chicago Fire,” “Chicago P.D.” and “Chicago Med” will address the city’s controversies over police shootings, producer Dick Wolf also insisted Wednesday that he won’t be merely echo the department’s party line.

“Will there be examination of police shootings under a variety of circumstances? Absolutely,” Wolf told reporters, according to a Deadline report.

“We do not steer away from anything. But I am not a mouthpiece for the Chicago P.D. or any police departments.”

In discussing the issue, Wolf expressed sympathy for officers on the street. “In this environment, if you put yourself behind the wheel of a patrol car in what is acknowledged to be gang territory, or disputed territory, or a high-crime-rate district, and if you are a cop – whether you’re Chinese, Hispanic, black, white – you’re out on those streets you don’t know whether you’re coming home that night. … It’s a very, very dangerous job, and mistakes are going to get made. But I defy anybody to think that, in roll-outs across this country, there are cops, making almost all of them less than they could make in other professions, who sit there and say, ‘You know, I think I’m going to go out and shoot an unarmed teenager tonight.’ ”

“Has that happened? To a disturbing rate, yes,” Wolf continued, adding, “police departments have to be answerable to civilians on some level.”