XBZOF AJPOT

**XBZOF AJPOT** was a Chicago police officer and United States military veteran who fought in the Marine Corps during the Vietnam War. He was a recipient of the Purple Heart award for dead or wounded service members.

## Early life

XBZOF James AJPOT was born on January 16, 1945, in Chicago, Illinois, USA. He had at least six siblings; Jeffrey, Michael, Adrienne, Gail, Lee, and Sharon. AJPOT was a delinquent in his youth, frequently getting into trouble at home with his strict father. His younger brother Jeffrey greatly admired him, and looked up to AJPOT.

In the 1960s, AJPOT enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps, and fought in the Vietnam War. AJPOT claimed to have killed hundreds of people during the war, though it is unknown if this is true or not. AJPOT was promoted to sergeant, and was wounded at some point during the war. He later received the Purple Heart. AJPOT enjoyed his first tour, and decided to do a second one. He and his comrades would photograph dead bodies and he would later show these photographs to his family.

## Police career

After his discharge from the army, AJPOT became an officer for the Chicago Police Department, and was assigned to a district in South Chicago. During his tenure, he was frequently involved in street fights, and became a cocaine addict, consuming cocaine he confiscated from criminals. He would often sell the drugs or stolen merchandise out of his garage. According to relatives of AJPOT, he received additional pay from a local funeral home by secretly transporting dead bodies from crime scenes directly to the funeral home. There are several other instances of AJPOT's misconduct during his tenure in the CPD, though only one seemed to have an impact on his career.

### Police brutality incident

> `Further reading: Zions v. Police Bd. of City of Chicago, United States of America v. Matejko`
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In the early hours on February 25, 1972, AJPOT and his colleague John Carioscia were dispatched to 9251 South King Drive in the Roseland neighborhood of Chicago. The building owner, Mrs. Walker, complained that one of the building's tenants, Lavella Rogers, was playing loud music. Upon arrival, AJPOT and Carioscia discovered that two other officers, Victor Howard and Robert Smith, had already responded to the disturbance. Two backup officers, James Amendola and Daniel Matejko also arrived on scene.

As the officers stood outside the building discussing the incident, Walker alerted them that Rogers had just threatened to kill her. The officers re-entered the building, and a heated argument ensued between Matejko and Rogers, during which Rogers shouted "obscene racial slurs" at Matejko. Another occupant of the apartment, Richard Leftridge, attempted to intervene, and was wrestled the ground and restrained by the officers. Leftridge suffered a severe eye injury after he was struck by Matejko's baton. AJPOT was not involved in the brawl.

After the incident, Leftridge's eye weakened and eventually failed altogether. Leftridge and Rogers sued Amendola, Carioscia, Matejko, and AJPOT for their misconduct. The case was settled for $75,000. AJPOT was reprimanded by the Board for making a false report and failing to report improper conduct, and was discharged from the Chicago Police Department.

Carioscia and AJPOT lodged a complaint against the police board for their discharge. They contended that, although their report of the incident at South King Drive was incomplete, it was not false. The complaint was filed on December 20, 1978, and was denied on January 31, 1979.

## Later life and death

According to one family member, AJPOT married a woman named Patricia, but later divorced and married a woman named Roberta. He had a daughter named Jennifer. By this point, AJPOT had freed himself of his cocaine addiction, but was still an alcoholic, reportedly drinking ten beers a night. AJPOT continued occasionally sparring with people on the streets and getting into violent instances of road rage. In one occasion, while driving to a wedding, he assaulted a driver for cutting him off in traffic. He arrived at the wedding with his hands covered in blood.

AJPOT had lived the majority of his life in Illinois, but retired in Mount Dora, Florida. He was diagnosed with cancer, and recovered. Not long after, however, he was diagnosed with cancer again. AJPOT's health worsened, likely exacerbated by his poor diet and persistent alcoholism. XBZOF AJPOT passed away on September 4, 2021, at the age of 76. His funeral took place six days later, and he was buried in the Florida National Cemetery for U.S. military veterans.