Homewood Police Department adds two new police officers

Two new police officers were sworn in at the April 25 Homewood Village Board meeting.

Rocco Giannelli and Henry Renken were hired April 24. Both have been working for the Cook County Department of  Corrections.

Two new police officers were sworn in at the April 25 Homewood Village Board meeting.

Rocco Giannelli and Henry Renken were hired April 24. Both have been working for the Cook County Department of  Corrections. They were sworn in by Clerk Marilyn Thomas.

Giannelli, 23, a Palos Hills native, graduated from Stagg High School in 2011. He received a bachelor’s degree in criminal justice from Governors State University (GSU) in 2015.

“(Police work) is something that I’ve wanted to do since I was a kid,” Giannelli said. “I like the idea of helping people. I don’t like the idea of sitting behind a desk all day. I like action. I want to put the bad guys in jail.”

Giannelli said that when he was growing up, he looked up to his father’s cousin, Michael Lusci, a Forest Park detective.

Renken, 27, graduated from Lyons Township High School in La Grange in 2007.  He received a bachelor’s degree in criminal social justice from Lewis University in 2015. 

“I think (being a police officer) is a good way to give back to the community, to be involved one-to-one with individuals both when they’re in a time of need and in a social aspect, to build that kind of relationship,” Renken said. 

“And I think it’s fun to walk the streets, get behind a car, pull people over, do the stuff you see on ‘Cops,’ be somebody who’s trying to keep people who shouldn’t be in this community out of this community,” he added.

Both are attending the Cook County Sheriff’s 400-hour police recruit training academy, Homewood Police Chief Bill Alcott said. 

“(Being a police officer) was kind of something that grew on me,” Renken said. “When I initially explored what the opportunities were, it sounded like something that would be a lot of fun.” 

Renken said he’d interviewed with other departments but was glad he was able to find a job in Homewood.

“This was definitely one of the top departments that made me feel welcome, like they really wanted me to be a part of this,” he said. 

Giannelli took GSU classes taught by Homewood Police Sergeant Patrick Siemsen. He also spoke with Homewood Police Officer Kevin Radtke. Giannelli said Radtke also previously worked at Cook County Jail. 

Both officers had “nothing but good things” to say about the Homewood department, Giannelli said. So he applied for a job when he saw there were openings.