Alex J. Wolinski biography: 13 things about Chicago, Illinois cop

Alex J. Wolinski is from Chicago, Cook County, Illinois, United States. He is a Chicago Police Department officer and a member of the International Association of Chiefs of Police.

Wolinski previously lived in Twin Lakes, Wisconsin, USA. He has also lived in Michigan, USA particularly in East Lansing and Harper Woods.

In May 2002, Wolinski earned his bachelor’s degree in criminal justice and safety studies from the University of Illinois at Chicago. On August 26, 2002, the Chicago Police Department hired him.

From 2004 to 2018, a total of 11 complaints were filed against Wolinski, according to the Citizens Police Data Project. He worked for the Chicago Police Department’s 11th District Patrol from March 2006 to June 2012, the department’s Central Investigations- Fugitive Apprehension Unit from June 2012 to June 2016 and department’s 11th District Patrol from June 2016 to September 2017.

In 2019, Wolinski participated in the Chicago Police Department’s Executive Development Program for Sergeants. Here are 13 more things about the Chicago cop:

1. On January 1, 2004, the Chicago Police Department gave him the Attendance Recognition Award .
2. In May 2005, he earned his master’s degree in public safety administration from Lewis University in Romeoville, Illinois. On September 11, 2005, he and his colleagues Ben Cherek and Richard J. Plotke Jr. arrested Lushon Lette Lee and charged him with public indecency and resisting a police officer. Found not guilty of either offense by a jury on March 13, 2006, Lee filed a case against him, Cherek and Plotke on October 18, 2007, accusing them of arresting him without probable cause, using excessive force in effecting the arrest and depriving him of due process. The Chicago Police Department gave him the Attendance Recognition Award on June 1, 2006 and the Joint Operations Award on May 5, 2006.
3. The Chicago Police Department gave him Police Officer of the Month Award on January 6, 2008, a special commendation on October 8, 2008, Presidential Election Deployment Award on November 4, 2008.
4. The Chicago Police Department gave him the Crime Reduction Award on January 1, 2009 and the Deployment Operations Center Award on September 27, 2009.
5. The Chicago Police Department gave him the Unit Meritorious Performance Award on January 1, 2010, the Outside Governmental Agency Award on May 5, 2010, the Deployment Operations Center Award on May 22, 2010 and the Joint Operations Award and the Unit Meritorious Performance Award on December 14, 2010.
6. The Chicago Police Department gave him the Attendance Recognition Award on September 1, 2011, the Joint Operations Award on October 8, 2011, the Emblem of Recognition for Physical Fitness on October 29, 2011, the Problem Solving Award on December 14, 2011.
7. The Chicago Police Department gave him the Recognition/Outside Governmental Agency Award on February 8, 2012 and Nato Summit Service Award on May 18, 2012. On November 13, 2012, his photos were published on Andrew A. Nelles‘s blog.
8. The Chicago Police Department gave him the Joint Operations Award on January 11, 2014 and the Unit Meritorious Performance Award on July 16, 2014.
9. On June 1, 2016, he became a Chicago Police Department sergeant. On October 4, 2016, he and Jennifer R. Wolinski bought a property in Chicago for $318,000.
10. In September 2017, he joined Chicago Police Department’s 11th District Tactical Team.
11. On February 21, 2019, he and Alain Aporongao were two of the nine male Chicago Police Department officers who mistakenly conducted a raid on Anjanette Young‘s home at 164 N. Hermitage Avenue in Chicago while looking for a crime suspect named Andy L. Simpson. He joined the department’s Area Technology Center and Social Media Exploitation (SOMEX) Team in July 2019 and the Police Executive Research Forum in November 2019.
12. Speaking about Chicago residents’ willingness to help detectives solve crimes, he told West Virginia’s News in December 2020, “The tips were more prevalent than you think.”
13. He was 43 years old when the Chicago Police Board voted on June 15, 2023 to fire him.