Billionaire Ken Griffin donates $10 million to help Chicago police curb murders, shootings

Aamer Madhani | USA TODAY

CHICAGO — Ken Griffin, the billionaire founder of the hedge fund Citadel, announced Wednesday he’s donating $10 million to bolster the Chicago Police Department and University of Chicago Crime Lab's joint effort to use predicative analytics to combat violent crime in some of the most violence-plagued neighborhoods in the nation’s third-largest city.

The money from Griffin, who has donated millions to mostly Republican political candidates as well as philanthropic causes, will largely be spent on civilian data analysts to work alongside sworn officers in what the department has dubbed Strategic Decision Support Centers.

“No child anywhere should be afraid to walk to school or play outside,” Griffin said. “A safer Chicago attracts more families, more businesses, better jobs and creates more opportunities for all of us.”

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Billionaire Ken Griffin announces $10 million donation to help support Chicago Police and University of Chicago Crime Lab’s Strategic Decsion Support Center to combat violence in nation’s third largest city. pic.twitter.com/0kczWbmC2x — Aamer Madhani (@AamerISmad) April 11, 2018

The data-driven support centers built in 11 of the city’s districts — an area that covers about 100 square miles — use hyper local video, shot spotter and other data to help better deploy officers in the city and more quickly respond to violent crime.

The department has credited the nerve centers with helping reduce violence in the city in recent months. Shooting incidents are down about 25% and murders have declined by 22% in the first three months of 2018 compared to the same point last year.

The department began building the support centers in some of the hardest-hit police districts early in 2017.

Chicago recorded 762 murders in 2016 and 650 murders in 2017, more homicides that New York and Los Angeles combined in both years.

But the violence that has plagued the city now appears to be trending in the right direction — Chicago has recorded fewer shootings and murders for 13 consecutive months, according to police department data. In the 11 districts with the support centers, shooting incidents have decreased by 37% so far this year compared to the same period last year.

Griffin said he was impressed the joint effort has had a “very powerful impact in a very short period of time.”

Some of Griffin's grant will also be used by the department and the university's crime lab to develop programs that help police officers with stress management and mental health issues, according to city officials.

The founder of Citadel, who Forbes estimates has a net worth of $9 billion, has developed a close relationship with the city’s Democratic mayor, Rahm Emanuel, even though he and his colleagues at his hedge fund have poured millions of dollars into mostly Republican political causes on the federal level in recent years. Griffin has also donated more than $33 million to Illinois Gov. Bruce Rauner, a Republican, who faces a difficult re-election battle in November.

Griffin donated $1 million to Emanuel’s 2015 re-election campaign.

An avid cyclist, Griffin also donated $12 million to help the city build separate bicycle and pedestrian paths along Chicago’s lakefront trail. The lakefront path donation in 2016 was solicited by Emanuel after Griffin complained to him about sustaining damage to his bike. In December, Griffin — who is a soccer fan — also agreed to donate $3 million to help build 50 mini soccer fields throughout the city.

“I sometimes joke about this, I’m an expensive date for Ken Griffin,” Emanuel said.

The billionaire, who finalized a contentious divorce in 2015, poked backed at Emanuel.

“You are right,” Griffin said. “You are my most expensive date.”