CHICAGO — Retired Chicago first responder Monica Davis said she and her son Eulice thought he’d have a leg up in landing a job as a Chicago firefighter-EMT during an upcoming exam thanks to city rules aimed at giving a preference to young city residents. City rules give preference in hiring to city residents, Chicago Public Schools graduates, those with relatives killed in the line of duty or armed services and veterans.
Not only was Eulice Hudson, 24, a city resident and high school graduate, he been completed in the Black Fire Brigade, a nonprofit program that trains young adults as firefighter-EMTs and he’s enrolled in school for emergency medical technician training.
Soon after he applied to the Chicago Fire Department, he received a rejection email and was told that he hadn’t proven his city residency, his mother said. She added that a system glitch prevented her son’s credentials from attaching to his application and was later told that nothing could be done.
