Chicago Police Supt. Eddie Johnson says he expects he’ll undergo a kidney transplant in a few weeks.
In a wide-ranging interview with Bill Cameron on WLS-AM 890’s “Connected to Chicago,” which airs at 7 p.m. Sunday, Johnson said he was feeling good following a near collapse last month.
On Jan. 27, Johnson fell ill and lost his balance during a news conference. Later that day, he said he took blood-pressure medicine on an empty stomach, causing his near-collapse.
He acknowledged he was on a list for a kidney transplant and went to the hospital in November for a spike in his potassium levels.
“God willing in the next couple of weeks I’ll probably be going through the procedure,” he said regarding a kidney transplant. “I’m aces right now. I feel really good.”
Johnson also said he’s happy that Chicago is on the radar of President Donald Trump, who has repeatedly pointed to the city’s sky-high shootings and said he was prepared to send in “the feds.”
“We are ready and willing to work with anybody,” Johnson said, adding that Chicago needs federal money to pay for mentorship programs and more federal agents here.
“We would embrace all of that stuff,” he said.
Johnson said he would fire Officer Raoul Mosqueda if he finds he lied in court about his fatal shooting of Darius Pinex in 2011 during a traffic stop.
The Independent Police Review Authority earlier this week recommended Mosqueda’s firing for allegedly lying in the case. In December, the city agreed to pay Pinex’s family $3.5 million to settle a lawsuit.
Johnson also said he has discussed with Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart the idea of abolishing the state’s cash bail system.
On Friday, a state lawmaker introduced a bill that would release people charged with nonviolent offenses on their own recognizance and continue to allow judges to decide whether to detain people charged with violent crimes or put them on electronic monitoring.
“I like the idea of targeting the violent offenders and ensuring they are taken off the street,” Johnson said.
