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Every week, Linda Hansen attends the Evanston Police Department’s Deployment Meetings, takes notes on various topics and writes about other police-related matters of interest to ordinary citizens like her.
In the Squad Room - Intervention
Stolen
bicycles, vehicle break-ins and residential burglaries. Kids, sometimes working in teams, commit many
of these crimes. Such was the case on
5/20 when a youngster was discovered in a living room. The teen and his accomplices escaped on bikes
and were subsequently stopped by the police.
Depending
on the circumstances,
youthful offenders can be released into the custody of parents or
guardians. In a case like this one,
where the alleged has a history of criminal offenses, charges result in a trip
to Cook County’s Juvenile Detention Center. Children as young as ten
years of age can be held there awaiting adjudication of their cases. The
emphasis in juvenile justice – including stays at the Detention Center – is on
caring, compassion and rehabilitation.
On
a brighter note, on 5/24, off-duty Detective Ken Carter applied his stealth as a
detective to grab hold of a 22-year old male planning to jump from the ledge of
a parking garage in the 1800 block of Maple.
Now, the rest of the news.
Deployment Meeting - May 27, 2015
Past Week:·
- Copper thieves are at it again.
On 5/20, tools and copper piping were stolen from a construction site in
the 1000 block of Wesley.
- A 5/22 altercation between a group of individuals in the 1800 block of Lyons
resulted in the arrests of Evanston residents Jeffrey A. Craig, Eric Lee Peterson
and Herman Poster.
- Police were alerted to shots fired in the 1800 block of Hartrey on 5/22. Bullet holes were found on an inside wall as
well as a window. Two other Shots Fired
calls – in the 1000 block of Florence and the 1500 block of Pitner – were
received on 5/26. Both areas were checked and nothing was found. Fireworks can sound like gunshots I was once
reminded, and it was a holiday weekend.
- A window air conditioner was removed on 5/22 from a residence in the
800 block of Simpson to gain entrance and steal multiple items.
- On 5/24, a burglar entered a residence through an open window in the
1100 block of Oak. A Blu-Ray player,
DVDs and children’s toys were reported missing.
- Police and the EFD
were called to an apartment building in the 1900 block of Darrow on 5/25 when a back porch collapsed. Five individuals
were injured. None suffered
life-threatening injuries.
- Bicycle thefts this week: six in total, four unsecured and two locked
to bike racks on school grounds.
- Typically, cars stolen from Evanston are recovered within a
day or days. This was not the case this
week when a black Honda Odyssey was stolen in the 500 block of Sherman between
5/25 and 5/26. Also true of a 2003 Jeep Liberty stolen in the 1300 block of
Dodge the same night. In both cases, the
owners reported that all keys were accounted for.
- IDOT’s “Click It or Ticket” ended on 5/25. Over 81 citations were issued. The biggest
winners (or losers) were seat belt citations (47) and cell phone violations
(22).
- Packages continue to disappear from common areas, porches and front
steps. This week’s plunder from three
separate incidents: groceries, hiking gear and an Apple computer.
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On the beat: PST officers completed the Dawes School Bike Safety
Program, participated in a Fifth Ward meeting and walked NU residential
neighborhoods with the NUPD as part of the “Knock and Talk” effort to keep the
area safe as NU prepares for the 44th annual Dillo Day, scheduled for 5/30.
Looking Ahead·
- You’ll see EPD officers on the rooftop of the Dunkin' Donuts location at
1900 Dempster on 5/29 from 7 AM to 12 PM in support of the Torch Run for
Special Olympics in Illinois. Purchase a
special “The Champion” donut to support this worthy cause.
- It’s coming and your unaccompanied underage teens are not welcome. In
past years over 9,000 revelers have converged on NU’s landfill for Dillo Day
music and fun. This year, the numbers of
wristbands required for entry have all been sold. EPD PST and Traffic officers, along with a
full force of NUPD cops will be on hand this Saturday to keep the vibe groovy, mellow,
safe and legal.
Inquiring Minds: What is a burglary
suppression car?
Of
course, Commander Joe Dugan had the answer, and even though the question was
about cars, I found out that even those tricked-out Cannondales can be burglary suppression
vehicles. In fact, Officer Carrigan was just
honored at the awards ceremony this past week for apprehending a burglar in an area he was patrolling
on a bicycle.
According
to Commander Dugan, the department often uses burglary suppression cars. They’re deployed when sufficient manpower is
available or when a recent spate of residential, commercial or vehicle
burglaries have occurred. They’re used
proactively, too; one example he offered: monitoring off-campus residential
neighborhoods during holidays – even reading week – when break-ins typically occur.
Patrol
officers are routinely called into action, but depending on the situation,
teams can be assembled from various bureaus for specific initiatives. Officers wear street clothes, but even the
most law-abiding citizens will probably recognize those unmarked, Crown Vics or Ford Explorers. For that reason, officers routinely park the vehicles and walk around on foot or use bicycles. Dispatch
typically calls other units to a scene where the EPD is needed, but cops on a
burglary suppression detail are also available to back up fellow officers.
 The ON-GOING GUN BUYBACK
PROGRAM allows Evanston residents to turn in an operational firearm to
police at any time in exchange for $100. Residents can utilize this
service by calling 311 or the Evanston Police Department
non-emergency line at 847-866-5000. A police officer will pick up the unwanted
firearm at the residents’ address and present the resident with a voucher that
can be exchanged for $100 at the city collector’s office located in the Morton
Civic Center, 2100 Ridge Ave.
Firearms should not be brought to
the police department, unless prior approval has been granted from a supervisor at the police department. An officer will call the resident after a request is
made for the officer to come to a person's residence and retrieve the firearm.
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 What would you like to know about what the Evanston Police Department is doing to fight crime? Let us know if you have specific questions or concerns about issues in your neighborhood. Submissions are always welcome at police@cityofevanston.org or by calling the community strategies bureau at (847) 866-5019.
If you’d like to receive Evanston’s Daily Crime Report by email, you can subscribe here or view the Monthly Crime Statistics that are reported on a yearly basis to the FBI by clicking here.
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 The Spring 12-week Citizen Police Academy class recently graduated. Congratulations to all attendees. If you’d like to learn more about the Evanston Police Department, take an active role in Community Oriented Policing and join the ranks of 900 graduates since 1995, please visit: www.cityofevanston.org and plan to enroll in the Fall 2015 class. There is no cost to anyone who lives or works in Evanston.
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The
weekly deployment report is an informational bulletin prepared by a community
member that keeps citizens informed about what police do on a weekly basis.
Information contained in this report is not to be considered as a media/press
release. Any information considered by a media source from this bulletin needs
to be verified by an official from the department. This can be done by
contacting the media line at 847-866-5026.
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