Another tragedy occurred yesterday as another Chicago Police Officer was killed. We are fighting a very defensive battle against crime in Chicago and our adversaries are emboldened to continue their attacks on us. Patrolman Michael R. Bailey was slain in front of his home on Sunday, July 18, 2010. He was going to retire next month. God Bless you and your family.
Slain cop was a friend who saw the good in the world
Long-ago photo brings memories of the man I met in college who taught me to drive and who shared the joy of his family, fatherhood and serving his community
BY MARY MITCHELL Sun-Times Columnist
Not too long ago, I was shuffling through some old photographs and ran across one of a guy from my past.
Officer killed on South Side
He wore a huge Afro and had a big smile on his face.
The photo was taken on a hot summer afternoon outside my South Side home.
He was a beautiful black bohemian whom I had met in an anthropology class at Chicago State University.
He was the kind of guy who admired women partly because he knew we would have completed the homework assignment and would have taken copious notes from the class he missed.
I looked at the photo and smiled the way one does when remembering the carefree days of her youth.
This was the man who introduced me to Nichiren Sho Shuha Buddhism at a time when I was searching for a religious path.
This was the man who taught me how to really drive my very first car, a 1976 yellow Gremlin with brown racing stripes.
I slipped the photograph back into the pile and told myself that I would call him soon to find out what had become of his life.
I knew that he had become a Chicago Police officer about the same time I joined the Chicago Sun-Times as a reporter. We talked several times over the years.
He told me he had finally met the right woman and had gotten married. He was ecstatic about being a father and being able to raise his own children and to be present in their daily life.
He was happy. I was happy for him.
At another time, he talked about his wife's health. He did not complain, but spoke as a man who truly loved his wife and was worried about her well-being.
On another occasion, he shared with me a story about a baby who had been abandoned and how desperately he wanted to care for the baby himself if a decent family didn't step up.
After that, we lost contact. I was a reporter, and he was a police officer and the two didn't mix.
But I knew he was in good hands. He was living the life he always wanted. He had a family he loved and that loved him. As a police officer, he was contributing to his community and was part of the solution we often talked about.
I learned of Michael Bailey's death late Sunday afternoon when I checked my BlackBerry and found that another Chicago Police officer had been killed.
At first, I could not believe this was the same Michael Bailey.
But as details emerged about Bailey's life, I knew it was the man I knew long ago.
Like most people who are either related to police officers or know them personally, the fear is always there in the back of your mind that something terrible will happen to them.
But on the rare occasions that I talked to him, Bailey would joke that he was assigned to the 1st District, and nothing worse than a run-in with an unruly drunk or petty criminals ever happened in the Loop overnight.
It seems impossible that 20 years went by so quickly.
Bailey had a kind spirit and was the type of person who wanted to see the good in the world.
I'm sure he was a good police officer because he was a good citizen.
He loved Chicago's South Side and lived within miles of the area that he resided in when I knew him.
Bailey, who faced mandatory retirement next month, was shot to death Sunday morning in an apparent robbery attempt.
He had just finished a shift guarding the mayor's home.
Bailey was outside of his own home at 74th and Evans cleaning his newly purchased black Buick Regal when he was killed.
His wife, children, relatives and neighbors must be devastated.
Everyone in his neighborhood would have known him, which makes this crime even more heinous.
The person or persons whom police are searching for in connection with this crime are among the most dangerous criminals on the street.
What I remember about Officer Michael R. Bailey is that he never met a stranger.
What I know about him is that he always looked for the best in people and was concerned about their spiritual as well as their physical well-being.
When we part with someone, we never know it will be the last time.
I am sorry that I didn't pick up the phone.
Officer Michael R. Bailey was a brother in every sense of the word.
Slain cop was a friend who saw the good in the world
Long-ago photo brings memories of the man I met in college who taught me to drive and who shared the joy of his family, fatherhood and serving his community
BY MARY MITCHELL Sun-Times Columnist
Not too long ago, I was shuffling through some old photographs and ran across one of a guy from my past.
Officer killed on South Side
He wore a huge Afro and had a big smile on his face.
The photo was taken on a hot summer afternoon outside my South Side home.
He was a beautiful black bohemian whom I had met in an anthropology class at Chicago State University.
He was the kind of guy who admired women partly because he knew we would have completed the homework assignment and would have taken copious notes from the class he missed.
I looked at the photo and smiled the way one does when remembering the carefree days of her youth.
This was the man who introduced me to Nichiren Sho Shuha Buddhism at a time when I was searching for a religious path.
This was the man who taught me how to really drive my very first car, a 1976 yellow Gremlin with brown racing stripes.
I slipped the photograph back into the pile and told myself that I would call him soon to find out what had become of his life.
I knew that he had become a Chicago Police officer about the same time I joined the Chicago Sun-Times as a reporter. We talked several times over the years.
He told me he had finally met the right woman and had gotten married. He was ecstatic about being a father and being able to raise his own children and to be present in their daily life.
He was happy. I was happy for him.
At another time, he talked about his wife's health. He did not complain, but spoke as a man who truly loved his wife and was worried about her well-being.
On another occasion, he shared with me a story about a baby who had been abandoned and how desperately he wanted to care for the baby himself if a decent family didn't step up.
After that, we lost contact. I was a reporter, and he was a police officer and the two didn't mix.
But I knew he was in good hands. He was living the life he always wanted. He had a family he loved and that loved him. As a police officer, he was contributing to his community and was part of the solution we often talked about.
I learned of Michael Bailey's death late Sunday afternoon when I checked my BlackBerry and found that another Chicago Police officer had been killed.
At first, I could not believe this was the same Michael Bailey.
But as details emerged about Bailey's life, I knew it was the man I knew long ago.
Like most people who are either related to police officers or know them personally, the fear is always there in the back of your mind that something terrible will happen to them.
But on the rare occasions that I talked to him, Bailey would joke that he was assigned to the 1st District, and nothing worse than a run-in with an unruly drunk or petty criminals ever happened in the Loop overnight.
It seems impossible that 20 years went by so quickly.
Bailey had a kind spirit and was the type of person who wanted to see the good in the world.
I'm sure he was a good police officer because he was a good citizen.
He loved Chicago's South Side and lived within miles of the area that he resided in when I knew him.
Bailey, who faced mandatory retirement next month, was shot to death Sunday morning in an apparent robbery attempt.
He had just finished a shift guarding the mayor's home.
Bailey was outside of his own home at 74th and Evans cleaning his newly purchased black Buick Regal when he was killed.
His wife, children, relatives and neighbors must be devastated.
Everyone in his neighborhood would have known him, which makes this crime even more heinous.
The person or persons whom police are searching for in connection with this crime are among the most dangerous criminals on the street.
What I remember about Officer Michael R. Bailey is that he never met a stranger.
What I know about him is that he always looked for the best in people and was concerned about their spiritual as well as their physical well-being.
When we part with someone, we never know it will be the last time.
I am sorry that I didn't pick up the phone.
Officer Michael R. Bailey was a brother in every sense of the word.
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