WEBVTT 1 00:00:15.460 --> 00:00:20.000 The following paid for by the Citizens for Benzinger Committee, plus more than 2,225 2 00:00:20.740 --> 00:00:24.340 Democrats, Independents, and Republicans who believe that Pete Benzinger will be a fair 3 00:00:24.340 --> 00:00:25.280 and honest sheriff. 4 00:00:25.880 --> 00:00:31.380 It's about time people felt there was someone representing them in this complex but very 5 00:00:31.380 --> 00:00:32.800 important field of criminal justice. 6 00:00:33.400 --> 00:00:38.100 Someone concerned about the victims of crime, the witnesses, the police, the individual 7 00:00:38.100 --> 00:00:38.520 neighborhoods. 8 00:00:39.120 --> 00:00:43.880 You must be concerned, you must be professional, you must be able to do the job and have the 9 00:00:43.880 --> 00:00:47.380 heart to do it and the desire to do it and Pete meets those requirements with me. 10 00:00:48.080 --> 00:00:51.180 I've been director of the Chicago Crime Commission, the nation's oldest. 11 00:00:51.700 --> 00:00:56.360 I've been chairman of the Illinois Youth Commission, state agency dealing with kids, kids with 12 00:00:56.360 --> 00:00:57.400 problems and in trouble. 13 00:00:57.760 --> 00:01:02.760 I've been head of the state agency responsible for the adult and juvenile correctional facilities 14 00:01:02.760 --> 00:01:03.620 in the state of Illinois. 15 00:01:03.900 --> 00:01:07.700 I represent an alternative to Mr. Elrod and that type of politics. 16 00:01:08.460 --> 00:01:14.040 I represent all the people of Cook County fairly and equally and be interested in responding 17 00:01:14.040 --> 00:01:20.580 and having our office provide programs based on the needs of the county, not based on the 18 00:01:20.580 --> 00:01:26.860 What I'd like to do as sheriff of Cook County would be to provide a program so there was 19 00:01:26.860 --> 00:01:30.900 a special deputy that would be kind of adopted by the center. 20 00:01:31.320 --> 00:01:37.040 One of the biggest problems in crime and law enforcement are the crimes committed by repeat 21 00:01:37.040 --> 00:01:42.600 offenders and in Cook County the repeat offender rate is over 70%. 22 00:01:42.600 --> 00:01:47.800 When I was director of the state correctional system we reduced the repeater rate by 30% 23 00:01:47.800 --> 00:01:53.920 in three years through common sense, meaningful programs and a logical approach to corrections. 24 00:01:54.640 --> 00:01:56.960 We have to do better in Cook County to protect the public. 25 00:01:58.120 --> 00:02:02.600 I think the sheriff of Cook County should have a juvenile youth officer in every township. 26 00:02:03.060 --> 00:02:07.440 I think the sheriff of Cook County should develop as part of his budgetary program a 27 00:02:07.440 --> 00:02:14.360 means of making grants and aid to local community prevention organizations who are in a better 28 00:02:14.360 --> 00:02:21.500 position to handle the problems of youth in trouble than any bureaucratic agency that's 29 00:02:21.500 --> 00:02:23.280 governed at a county level or a state level. 30 00:02:23.600 --> 00:02:25.760 This is of major concern to me and to my wife Judy. 31 00:02:26.180 --> 00:02:30.500 She's a doctor with Head Start and she works with young kids and she knows the problems 32 00:02:30.500 --> 00:02:35.560 of kids who can become identified early on as potential people dropping out of school 33 00:02:35.560 --> 00:02:37.820 and not getting good health care and not getting good education. 34 00:02:38.220 --> 00:02:40.680 Our primary work is really out in the city. 35 00:02:40.680 --> 00:02:48.820 We have some 68 centers that we work all over the city of Chicago from in the projects and 36 00:02:48.820 --> 00:02:51.400 church basements and second story walk ups. 37 00:02:51.600 --> 00:02:53.860 We cover the medical aspect of all of these centers. 38 00:02:54.160 --> 00:03:02.680 A lot of the kids that are on drugs have not just a problem of utilizing a narcotic but 39 00:03:02.680 --> 00:03:06.940 really have got their own personal problems and low feelings and lack of communication 40 00:03:06.940 --> 00:03:08.480 with their parents and other kids. 41 00:03:09.120 --> 00:03:15.580 But going into politics and going into public life is indeed a commitment and it's a commitment 42 00:03:15.580 --> 00:03:19.360 that you have to be sure you really want to do and you have to feel it inside of yourself 43 00:03:19.360 --> 00:03:20.820 in order to really do it. 44 00:03:21.360 --> 00:03:26.460 And it's got all the bad things that go with it with you know politics, politicians, who 45 00:03:26.460 --> 00:03:27.560 are they, dirty people. 46 00:03:27.960 --> 00:03:29.960 You know all of this is there now. 47 00:03:30.480 --> 00:03:34.440 The people of Cook County are fortunate to have Peter Bensinger as a candidate for sheriff. 48 00:03:34.440 --> 00:03:39.440 He has an outstanding law enforcement background, excellent credentials and he is a man of unquestioned 49 00:03:39.440 --> 00:03:39.880 integrity. 50 00:03:40.160 --> 00:03:44.840 We believe that Peter Bensinger brings to the office of sheriff an independence, a freedom 51 00:03:44.840 --> 00:03:50.260 from the political patronage system which seriously permeates the entire office of Sheriff 52 00:03:50.260 --> 00:03:51.060 Richard Elrod. 53 00:03:51.820 --> 00:03:56.300 Party lines are not important in a time like these. 54 00:03:56.300 --> 00:04:05.920 I think it's what the candidate brings to the office and I think that Peter Bensinger 55 00:04:05.920 --> 00:04:11.440 is not only honest but he has quality which would be something new in the office. 56 00:04:11.560 --> 00:04:17.440 As sheriff of Cook County, above all else I want to make fair and honest judgments and 57 00:04:17.440 --> 00:04:23.640 decisions tough as they may be based on the facts and the needs and on no other consideration. 58 00:04:24.480 --> 00:04:29.720 And so I urge my fellow Democrats to vote for Peter Bensinger. 59 00:04:30.260 --> 00:04:34.220 I know I can do this job as sheriff of Cook County and do it better than Mr. Elrod. 60 00:04:35.280 --> 00:04:41.140 A professional not a politician, tough and totally independent, what our sheriff should be.