Hibernian Radio Podcast, Sat. September 9, 2023

Lyons’ Chief of Police Tom Herion Fox’s Pizza, Guinness, Madden Funds and Flood Brothers Disposal present the Hibernian Radio Hour for our second show at our newest recording location, The Beacon Pub in Forest Park and we are honored to have our old pal and Lyons’ Chief of Police, Tom Herion as our guest this week. Tom grew up in St. Peter Canisius and moved to St. Juliana when he was 18. He attended Weber High School and has been in Law Enforcement for over 35 years, working in Federal, State and local departments. He has held many titles including Sergeant and Undercover Narcotics Agent before moving up the ranks to Chief of Police. Tom was hired in Bensenville in the late ’80s and was the only person out of 700 people who was hired at orientation. He and Houli have become good pals over the years and they begin this week’s show by discussing some recent anti-cop stories in the media as well as delving into how Tom’s team responded to the riots during the pandemic. This local legend is an avid piper and has been staying busy with The Chicago Garda Pipes & Drums, opening for Gaelic Storm and The Red Hot Chili Pipers! Tom speaks fondly about his friend and fellow Lyons Police Chief, Tom “Tucker” Sheahan and chats about his family with focus on his father who worked as a Sergeant in Organized Crime. “He was a guy who made the mobsters nervous..” Tom has plenty of stories to share from his career so far including responding to the drunk driver who crashed into Brookfield Zoo last year as well as a car jacking in Lyons with shots fired that led to the school being put on lockdown. He and Houli also dive into the problems surrounding the current State Attorney’s Office and they chat about some of the social issues plaguing our country recently. “This (system) is not based on victims, this is based on protecting the offenders.” Tom ends his interview by sharing his hopes for the future of policing and Chicago politics. This guy is what we call a true Irish warrior! We take a musical break with Gaelic Storm‘s, “Don’t Let The Truth Get In The Way Of A Good Story”. Houli brings us up to date on some upcoming events including the 9th Annual Irish American Movie Hooley at The Wilmette Theatre on Sept 22-24.Then we head over to the recent obituaries followed by a quick trip to ‘Houli-Town’. Then it’s over to the obituaries followed by a quick trip to the crazy place known as “Houli-Town”.