Friday, February 26, 2021 | View in browser
Weekly Deployment Meeting Highlights
Every week, Linda Hansen attends the Evanston Police Department’s Deployment Meetings, takes notes on the topics discussed and writes about other police-related matters of interest to the people who work and live in Evanston.
A moment of Zen? (Credit: Corey Seeman, Lighthouse Beach, 2008)
Feast your eyes, readers. A quick glance at the This Week’s Crime map will have you wondering what, if anything, happened on the crime front last week. Crime Analyst Ring calls this a “quiet map”. I call it “nothing to write about”. Now take a deep breath.
So rather than gilding the lily with a few wry observations on things – after all, little or no crime is what we all want, right? – let’s just get to the few incidents that did offer a little fodder for this week’s post. And kudos to the EPD for stamping out crime.
Oh, one other thing – toward the end of this post, you will find the first issue of the EPD Traffic Bureau’s monthly newsletter. Be sure to look for it.
 click to enlarge
Deployment Meeting – February 24, 2021
- Officers responded to the 1800 block of Brown on 2/23 around 1:30 AM for the report of shots fired into a building. Five bullet holes were visible on the exterior of the building. Spent rounds were recovered from inside and shell casings were recovered from the alley. The building was occupied at the time, but no one was injured.
- On 2/23, the property manager of a building in the 1300 block of Oak reported that persons unknown damaged four first floor windows with bricks.
- Across the Border: Two Evanston juveniles were taken into custody, along with two Chicago teens, for criminal trespass to vehicle in the 2900 block of Touhy on 2/21.
- Officers patrolling the sound end of Evanston for motor vehicle burglaries and catalytic converter thefts on 2/20 observed Kristopher Bass in the 700 Michigan block checking car doors. They attempted to stop him, but he resisted their efforts and was taken into custody and later charged with battery to peace officer.
- More retail thefts: There were six thefts of electronics at a downtown retail store in the 1600 block of Sherman during the period. Household products were boosted from a grocery store in the 600 block of Chicago.
- All shift commanders reported routine patrols of the downtown area (including parking garages) for homeless issues; Howard Street, transit stations, the Chicago/Main business area and hotspots for crime prevention. Traffic Bureau officers assisted.
- Consequences of unlocked doors of vehicles and garages: one each, personal items taken from a Honda in the 1800 block of Brown and power tools missing from a garage in the 1700 block of Grove.
- One catalytic converter theft: The owner of a Toyota Prius parked in the 500 block of Hinman contacted the EPD for a theft that occurred in the overnight hours between 2/22 and 2/23.
- Community Strategies (PST – the Problem Solving Team) attended Homelessness Task Force and other meetings. They continue to: monitor and mediate quality of life issues related to nuisance properties, address safety and security concerns of residents in the Chicago/Main area and revisit ongoing complaints about homeless individuals in the Sherman Plaza garage.
The Week Ahead
- Look for Community Strategies officers at the 1st Ward meeting on 3/2 and the Sheridan Square Neighborhood Meeting on 3/3.
- The first Citizen Police Academy meeting of Class #53 will happen, virtually, on 3/3.
- Know a District 65 student in need of school supplies? Then register for the Back to School Restock event on Saturday, 3/6 from 11 AM – 1 PM. And if you have supplies to donate, please contact Family Focus Director Colette Allen.
Click the Image to Register
At this point in my life, there aren’t that many firsts. Still, life continues to offer an occasional surprise and this week, it was interviewing our third of three new police officers, William Mills, on his way to work … at 5:30 AM. If 26 year-old Officer Mills was the worm, I was the early bird.
That's Officer Mills ready to skydive.
He grew up about forty miles northwest of here before attending community college and then university where he earned a bachelor’s degree in business/human resources. His passion, however, was to be a police officer.
Why a career in law enforcement? “I always wanted to be a police officer.” he said. “My best friend’s dad was a Department of Natural Resources (DNR) cop. He was like a father to me, so I was able to see, as a kid, the man behind the badge. He made a difference in my life and I wanted to do the same thing for other people.”
While many police departments have found themselves understaffed, it’s ironic when you consider how competitive the landscape really is. (One study I read stated that only 10% of applicants – currently in shrinking numbers - are hired.) His post-graduation years were spent substitute teaching high school P.E. and algebra as he began applying to police departments.
I wanted to know what kind of hurdles applicants need to clear before getting a conditional offer. It was daunting. “First, you take a cognitive ability test. You have to score in the 90s to get into the first batch of interviews for most police departments.” What kind of questions? “It ranges from timed math questions to reading comprehension, grammar and spelling – and then your writing skills are evaluated by writing a field report. If you score high enough, you can move to the next phase - an oral interview with a department.”
Like every job, researching the landscape is essential. “Evanston," he said, “is very community-policing oriented, so they were looking for people with diverse backgrounds, officers who understand the dynamics of a community and the importance of partnership with citizens.” Was his business degree an obstacle? “For someone like me, whose degree doesn’t directly correlate with law enforcement, I needed to demonstrate all the ways my education and teaching experience were relevant.” The next to last steps were a comprehensive background check and a polygraph examination. Yep, a lie-detector test.
“If everything checks out, you have a final interview with the Chief or Deputy Chiefs and sometimes even civilian trustees. The final step is a comprehensive psychological evaluation.” It takes months to get through these steps. A “conditional” (offer) is generally made before the polygraph and psych eval. And the recruit’s probationary period? A full two years.
As for surprises in his first three weeks of active duty, not that many. Just that “a lot of what you do day by day is not 100% go go go. There’s a fair amount of paperwork for everything that we do; documentation is important. And I completely get that.”
Like his fellow new recruits, he doesn’t feel that civilians have a balanced view of law enforcement. “For every negative thing that happens (something like issuing a traffic citation), there are probably 10 or 20 positive things that the public isn’t aware of; and those are the kinds of things that happen every day that can really build trust.”
As for his entry-level assignment to Patrol? “I like it. I want to get to know the people and what’s going on in their neighborhoods so that I can help out.”
Thanks to Officer Mills for his contribution to this week’s ITSR.
The Evanston Police Department reminds drivers that the speed limit on Ridge Avenue is 25 miles per hour from Howard to Emerson Streets. This area is monitored by officers using special Laser Radar, along with constant patrols. Please obey the posted speed.
Follow the Evanston Police Department on Twitter for traffic and other updates.
Traffic deaths on the rise nationwide
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration reports that the number of people killed in motor vehicle crashes rose 4.6 percent in the first nine months of 2020 despite a 14.5 percent decrease in vehicle miles traveled. NHTSA is still compiling 2020 data and does not report on changes in pedestrian or bicyclist deaths.
Don't Text and Drive
Distracted driving facts to consider:
- In 2018, there were 2,841 people killed and an estimated additional 400,000 people injured in motor vehicle crashes involving distracted drivers.
- Eight percent of fatal crashes, 15 percent of injury crashes, and 14 percent of all police-reported motor vehicle traffic crashes in 2018 were reported as distraction-affected crashes.
Evanston Police continue to focus on distracted driving. Any time a driver has a communication device in their hand, it is considered distracted driving. This means that if you're stopped at a traffic light, you may not pick up, use, or look at your phone, including GPS.
Gun Buyback Program
The Ongoing 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 resident's 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.
Property Recovered in Evanston
Think your property may have been recovered by the Evanston PD? Click here to start your search. Be sure to check out the third party service that displays items found within the last 21 days. Here's the link.
 Subscribe to Evanston’s Daily Crime Report by email or view the Monthly Crime Statistics that are reported on a yearly basis to the FBI. Take a look at the Evanston Police Department Dashboard.
Let us know if you have specific 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 would like to learn more about the Evanston Police Department, take an active role in community-oriented policing, and join the ranks of over 900 graduates since 1995, please visit the Citizen Police Academy webpage.
There is no cost to anyone who lives or works in Evanston. Getting to know your police force is essential in reducing crime, building trust in the community and serving the needs of the community.
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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