A photographer for Mayor Brandon Johnson’s office was fired this spring after his colleagues reported him for allegedly carrying a firearm in a city-issued vehicle.
Terence Crayton was found to have violated City Hall policy by bringing a gun “on to City of Chicago property and in a City of Chicago vehicle” in April, according to a copy of his personnel records obtained via a public records request. He was terminated April 24, the same day his co-workers reported him.
Crayton’s boss, communications director Erin Connelly, wrote in an April 29 memo that two of her staffers alerted her about the firearm and after that, a third employee reported that Crayton had mentioned carrying a firearm to previous mayoral events “at his own personal discretion.” That employee said they reported Crayton to his former boss, Ronnie Reese, but Reese “did not report the incident or issue any report or disciplinary action,” per Connelly’s note.
“After assessment and conversation with senior executive team members it was determined that it was in the best interest of the safety and security of city employees to terminate employment for Terence Crayton,” Connelly wrote.
Connelly declined to comment further Monday, citing the press office’s policy against speaking publicly about personnel issues, while Crayton did not respond to a request for comment.
In a statement to the Tribune, Reese denied that any staffers notified him about concerns over Crayton’s alleged firearm possession.
“I categorically deny this as untrue,” Reese wrote in a text message.
Records show that Connelly later requested that Crayton be placed on the Do Not Hire list, which bars him from future City Hall employment, after “discussions and deliberations with witnessing employees.” The city’s Human Resources Department granted the request the next day.
Reese hired Crayton in October 2023 as a press aide before promoting him to be the mayor’s photographer in March 2024, according to his HR records. Reese was fired from serving as the mayor’s communications chief later that year after multiple harassment complaints from other staffers. He has denied those allegations.