Cop honored, then laid off

EAST ST. LOUIS, Ill., April 15 (UPI) -- The city council in East St. Louis, Ill. voted to lay off a police officer just minutes after they honored him for apprehending a slaying suspect.

East St. Louis Mayor Alvin Parks Jr. called officer Kristopher Weston, 28, before the city council to praise him for his work following the robbery of a grocery store, the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported Wednesday.

Less than 5 minutes later, the city council unanimously approved budget cuts that will eliminate the jobs of five police officers, five firefighters and a number of other employees at the end of the month.

Weston, who has been on the force for 10 months, has little seniority which means he will most likely be one of the officers laid off.

"It was nice to be recognized," he told the Post-Dispatch. "I'll just leave it at that."

Parks said to the newspaper that it will be tough to lose any police officers, adding that the newer officers are among the best in the department.