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Every week, Linda Hansen a resident, 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 - Gang Violence & Intervention
Deployment Meeting – Wednesday, June 11, 2014
Gun violence
resulting in the injury of one Evanston youth and the death of another raised
the concern of gang violence and of course retaliation. Most
of this week’s deployment meeting focused on conflicts between crews inside and
outside Evanston’s borders and the EPD’s intelligence tactics in monitoring,
predicting and even preventing their actions.
Consider Newton’s Third Law: every action has an equal and opposite
reaction.
The police department
is very concerned about gang related violence and its’ prevention, in addition to
community impact. Various departmental resources are geared towards this
initiative, such as youth services, teenage mentoring, community policing, collaboration
with the city’s youth and young adult outreach workers, and enforcement. It is
a difficult task at predicting the cause of conflicts and when they will occur.
The “no snitch” culture embodied in gang related violence makes it all the more
difficult for police to hold people accountable when an act of violence does
occur. The one notable piece of the equation for violence prevention is
community involvement.
Prior to This Week
- The body recovered off the shoreline near the 2300 block of Campus
Drive on 5/31/2014 was positively identified as Corey Janczak, 29, who disappeared
on 5/18.
- There were no catalytic converter thefts during the deployment period,
leaving Honda CRVs in the area surveilled by the EPD safe from thieves.
- On 6/6/2014 at 1:45 p.m., Evanston Police responded to the 600 block of
Howard St. and assisted CPD with a shooting that left one person dead and
another shot in the foot. Chicago Police are investigating this incident.
- On 6/6/2014, responding to several shots fired calls, the EPD located a
17-year old who had been shot in the neck near the 1600 block of Emerson. According to the victim, he was in the
company of several friends in Gilbert Park when an assailant fired several
shots from behind a bush. The victim was
treated and released from Evanston Hospital.
Detectives are seeking the public’s assistance in providing any
information related to this crime.
- Caught in the act: On 6/7/2014, Keith Freedman, age 45, and Albert
Sauls, age 43, both of Chicago, were apprehended by EPD when they were observed
stealing a bicycle on the 1800 block of Maple.
According to police, the pair is suspected of over two dozen high-end
bicycle thefts in Evanston since May. The arresting detective observed one
offender using a battery-powered saw to “go through a bike lock like it was
butter in about 10 seconds”. Freedman
and Sauls were taken into custody and currently are at the Cook County
Department of Corrections and await a 6/18 court date.
- In spite of the apprehension of Freedman and Sauls, several bike thefts
have occurred since their arrest. Unsecured
bikes in unlocked garages are targets and so are locked bikes in downtown
areas. EPD officers believe the
downtown thefts targeting high-end bikes are likely the work of professional
teams based on their observations of the suspects’ highly effective methods.
- On 6/7/2014, copper wire, valued at $1,750, miscellaneous tools and
power equipment valued at $2,500 were stolen from a construction site on the 1800 block of
Maple.
- Between 6/7/2014 and 6/8/2014, tools and a laptop computer were stolen
from a commercial enterprise on the 1100 block of Dodge. There have been several recent commercial
burglaries in the general area, including incidents on the 900 block of Pitner
and the 2000 block of Greenleaf.
- In one four-hour period on
6/11/2014, Evanston traffic officers issued 46 citations for cell phone use which
was focused to the 1400 to 1700 blocks of Ridge Ave.
Looking Ahead
- Gang hot spots, particularly in the wake of last week’s violence, will be
a focus of NET unit, Tactical team, long
day cars, and all patrol watches.
- The EPD Traffic unit will be providing assistance as the house built by
ETHS students moves from its current on-campus location to the 1900 block of
Jackson on 6/16/2014.
- The 15th annual Ricky Byrdsong Race Against Hate will be
held on Father’s Day, 6/16. Sheridan
Road will be blocked from Lincoln St. from 7 a.m. until approximately 12 noon. Over 3,000 runners and walkers are expected.
- School’s out for most Evanston and Northwestern students. EPD officers will continue to patrol public
and private school zones as students begin summer school and day camps
throughout the city.
- The EPD armored car will be deployed in Gilbert Park and other
locations where recent gang related activity has occurred.
Inquiring Minds - The Importance of
Intervention
A gang presence and its associated violence is
always a concern for any community. Some questions have arisen about what to
look for and to see if there are indicators that a child is involved in a gang.
Here’s what you haven’t heard unless you've had the
opportunity, like me, to hear what detectives from the police department have
to say: serious gang affiliations aren't generally cemented in early teen years. According to one EPD detective, what some of us might consider dangerous street
gangs are loosely formed groups of five or six kids – some with fantasies of
becoming the next rappers and others with some criminal intent. They typically brand themselves with fanciful
names or ally their group with some – or maybe multiple – gangs they have no
real association with.
That doesn't mean there isn't cause for
concern. Parents, relatives and close
family friends need to watch a teenager’s behavior. Staying out beyond curfew (10pm,
Sun. – Thurs. & 11pm, for Fri. & Sat. in Evanston) and hanging with the
wrong crowd can have an everlasting impact on a teen. Social media is also the
most popular form of communication with teenagers and can create conflict. Know
your teen, or if you are a guardian of that teen, watch their behavior and hold
them accountable. Keeping them involved in constructive activities, sports, theater, summer school or extra-curricular activities has proven to deter
negative behavior.
The hard reality is that some kids do choose a life
of making poor choices and end up involved in street gangs. This in turn can
cause a pattern of criminal activity that often escalates into violence against
other people. This the greatest concern for any parent/guardian and affects not
only the safety of those who chose to be in a gang but the possibility of
collateral injury to those not involved in gang activity, the innocent
bystander. With that said, reaching out to at-risk youth and working to break
down barriers helps deter gang violence. It can mean the difference between a
purposeful life and a prison sentence. Help our youth and get involved.
Volunteering in a mentoring program can change a teen’s life for the better.
 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 handled or brought to
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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 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 800 graduates since 1995, please visit www.cityofevanston.org/cpa and plan ahead to enroll in the Fall 2014 class which starts in the end of August. There is no cost to anyone who lives or works in Evanston.
Apply Now for the Youth CPA which Starts July 14 - 18, 2014
The goal of the Youth program, ages 13 - 17, is to develop positive relationships between teens and law enforcement and break down the barriers between them. (This is not a boot camp type of program.) The interactive curriculum includes a tour of police headquarters, CSI practices, an overview of SWAT operations plus class experiments and exercises in self-defense and use of force decision-making. Graduates receive a jacket and diploma. Class size is limited to 25 and applications are being taken now.
For more information or to request an application, call 847 859-7843 or email: lspells@cityofevanston.org
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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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