According to the Chicago Sun-Times, violent crime was 21% higher in communities where there was a large number of former CHA residents who had relocated using vouchers. This study measured crime and it’s relation to relocated CHA residents from 2000 to 2008.

When the city tore down notorious housing projects like Cabrini Green, they gave many residents vouchers that would allow them to move into other communities, dispersing the poverty that plagued these high-crime housing complexes.

Over the entire city, violent crime dropped about 26%, with 1% of the drop being attributed to the relocation planning, according to the Urban Institute. Their recent study found, however, that crime didn’t drop as dramatically where the relocated residents moved to.

Up until now there had been no concrete data on how the relocations affected crime rates in the new communities. CHA spokesperson Kellie O’Connell-Miller said of the study, “It reiterates the importance to us to remain committed to responsible relocation strategies.”

Other cities are looking to Chicago as a model for relocation programs, as many hope to dissipate the high crime that has plagued giant public housing complexes.

Susan Popkin, the author of the Urban Institute study says that CHA’s relocation program has improved over the years and that the support given to voucher-holding “relocatees” now is much better than it was when the program began.

Now, CHA gives former residents access to mental health services and counseling on choosing a new neighborhood. It seems the city understands that growing up in the crime-ridden projects and living in them for many years can be a difficult thing to simply come out of. Help with the adjustment is crucial.

Some neighborhoods aren’t happy with their new residents.

“Never did we see individuals sitting on their cars drinking 40-ounce bottles of beer,” said the president of Chatham-Avalon Park Community Association Keith Tate, calling the program “disastrous for Chatham.”

It isn’t clear whether the long-time community members are reaching out to their new neighbors or shuttering their windows and doors. What is clear is that the city-mouse and suburban-mouse will need to learn to live in harmony and that may mean adjusting some community norms on both sides.

Sometimes it doesn’t matter what you do, only what you look like or who you are that makes you suspicious. Just ask anyone who has been arrested for a trivial matter or even arrested for something they didn’t do.

If you aren’t confident that the justice system will treat you fairly, you aren’t alone. Contact our offices today to discuss how we may be able to help you as you face criminal charges.

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According to the Chicago Sun Times, Emanuel expects more than just “We have an anti-gang unit,” from the police department. Instead, he wants a comprehensive strategy designed to facilitate major changes and break down the system of gang violence.

In the Little Village child’s murder, two teenaged gang members are charged with murder. In another shooting that happened last weekend, a young gangster shot a police officer after being confronted on a curfew violation.

Emanuel has turned to Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy to institute changes and a strategic plan of attack.

According to McCarthy, police officers in 10 of the city’s most violent neighborhoods will get printed “gang audit” reports detailing who in those communities are active gang members and which blocks are controlled by which gangs. The hope is that eventually, all of this information will be available in patrol cars. These audits will be conducted on all of the city’s districts at some point, but the city is starting in the areas where the attention is needed most.

Another change is that tactical officers will not leave their districts to do other details, like patrolling parades or going where the extra staff is needed. Instead, gang officers will be expected to work within their district unless they receive explicit approval from McCarthy or his deputy superintendent.

The police will also try to document where and when gang conflicts are happening, will work to investigate what leads up to these violent shootings, and work with the courts and prosecutors to determine which laws are being underutilized in the fight against gangs and whether new legislation is needed.

In his press conference, Mayor Emanuel called on city residents to actually care about the violence regardless of which neighborhood it was happening in.

“I understand the comfort that comes with, ‘It didn’t happen in my neighborhood.’ But, it happened in your city and any child who is a victim of violence because they were on the front porch is a tear at the city’s fabric.”

The city cracks down hard on suspected gang members already, and it will only get worse for those people suspected of associating with these gangs. If you are charged with a crime and accused of being in a gang, you can expect the prosecutor to have little sympathy. Contact our offices today to discuss the details of your case and how we might be able to help.

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The NATO conference is coming to the city in May. And though the G8 summit was supposed to be held at the same time, that meeting has been moved to Camp David. Though the G-8 is believed to be the most controversial of the two, the city is still gearing up for thousands of protestors to descend in May.

The face shields fit over police helmets, according to the Chicago Tribune and are designed to protect the face of officers from projectiles and liquids, should they be thrown. Total cost of the shields: $757,657.

This contract to get face shields followed another recent deal to get the city 3,057 shields at the price of $193,000. That’s nearly a million dollars for over 10,000 face shields. The department has about 12,244 sworn officers, many of which don’t leave their desk jobs.

City police have been training for the protests and are prepared for mass arrests and potential conflict. While protestors coming to the city during this time will likely range from completely peaceful to branches of anarchists, there’s little doubt that the cops will meet them all outfitted in riot gear and looking like soldiers from the future.

It is the Constitutional right of all Americans to peacefully assemble, to protest the government. But in the name of crowd control or keeping things peaceful, the police often make hundreds, if not thousands of arrests at these sort of gatherings.

Police Department spokesperson Melissa Stratton “would not say” how many officers were going to be wearing the new shields when the NATO summit happens, but did say the upcoming date provided the department an opportunity to upgrade all shields. The cost was covered by Homeland Security money.

The police are preparing to make arrests. When you put a face shield, helmet, and riot gear on a cop, they will be prepared for a riot. There is little doubt that we will be hearing all sorts of reports of use of force and mass arrests in May during the meeting of international dignitaries.

The majority of arrests will likely be made for things like disorderly conduct or resisting arrest. These charges are common in situations of civil disobedience.

Whether you were protesting or simply getting on a police officer’s nerves, you could face a disorderly conduct charge. Contact us today to discuss what these charges mean and how we might be able to help.

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The law was at the center of a case we mentioned last month, where artist Christopher Drew was arrested for selling art on the street without a permit. He was then charged with violating the eavesdropping law because he used an audio recorder to document his conversations with police, a recorder the police didn’t initially know about.

This current law makes such recordings a felony. Even when acting in the line of duty, in a position paid for by taxpayers, people are not allowed to record cops.

But judge Sacks’ ruling isn’t the first attack on the law, nor will it be the last. Lawmakers are currently looking to change the law and make it more logical. The proposed legislation, sponsored by Elaine Nekritz, would allow such recordings if they occur in public places while officers are acting in the line of duty.

The issue of recording police officers has become more and more prominent in the last several years as camera phones have become more and more prevalent. Usually at issue is video recordings of police, though this particular case focused on audio recordings.

Prior to judge Sacks’ ruling there was a concern that charges would be levied against any less than cooperative journalist documenting police action in the coming G8 and NATO meetings later this spring. Although charges could still arise, prosecutors will be even more likely to think twice considering both Sacks’ ruling and the pending legislation.

Does this mean you can shove a camera in a cop’s face whenever you feel like it? Of course not. But, you should be able to record the police from a safe distance, so that your recording does not interfere with their duties.

Does this mean the police will respect your recording of them? Not necessarily. In many cases arising across the country, it is the police and not the laws that are causing amateur camera people problems. When involved in a high-pressure, dangerous, and litigious job, as police officers are, video documentation isn’t always welcome.

For this reason, many people have faced unlawful arrest or seizures of their property simply because an officer was inconvenienced.

Whether you are charged with disorderly conduct for interfering with police duties or if you were wrongfully arrested, we may be able to help. Contact our offices today to discuss the details of your case and what can be done.

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Governor Pat Quinn hasn’t made an official decision on whether he agrees with the idea, preferring instead to listen to legislators’ opinions on the matter before he makes his decision.

The NRA, on the other hand, took no time in responding to Emanuel’s idea.

“The last time we checked, Rahm Emanuel was mayor of Chicago—not emperor of Illinois,” said NRA spokesperson Stephanie Samford. “This legislation would make self-defense a luxury item.”

Emanuel says his proposed registry would make it easier to track weapons involved in crimes and to see where the illegal gun trade is coming from. Gun owners would pay a $65 when they purchased a weapon and gave to submit their name, address, telephone number, the gun maker, serial number, and location of purchase.

“I’m introducing this because our law enforcement community, our parents, our community groups, our block and neighborhood watch groups need a proper gun legislation to complement all the other activities we’re doing,” said Emanuel in defense of his suggestion.

Some lawmakers support the suggestion. Representative Rosemary Mulligan (R-Des Plaines) says she will support the bill when it’s introduced. Others, however, are not so enthusiastic.

“It’s never going to work,” said Representative Brandon Phelps (D-Harrisburg).  “They’re trying to go after criminals. They’re never going to register their guns. They won’t pay the fee.” Brown called the suggestion a “slap in the face of every law-abiding gun owner.”

Senator Kwame Raoul says he understands the mayor’s reasoning, trying to attack gun trafficking in order to reduce gun violence. But, he’s unsure of whether or not the mayor’s bill could pass as is.

Gun laws are always a touchy issue, because law-abiding gun owners don’t want to be punished for the criminal actions of others. But, in order to keep communities safe, lawmakers believe these kinds of strict regulations are necessary.

State laws are already fairly strict when it comes to gun ownership and gun crimes, though cities like Chicago also have their own local ordinances. On a state level, you can face class a misdemeanor charges for possessing a firearm. If it marks your second offense, the charge is raised to a felony.

When you find yourself on the wrong side of the state’s gun laws, you need someone on your side fighting for the best possible results in court. Contact our offices today to discuss your case and how we might be able to help.

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Illinois has arguably the most strict wiretap law. If you record the police without their permission, you can be arrested and face 15 years in prison. It doesn’t matter where the taping took place or if there were others around. You record them and you are vulnerable to arrest.

In other states, you can film cops as long as they are in public and there is no “expectation of privacy”. In Massachusetts, you cannot record unless the recording device is held in plain sight. In Illinois, however, you cannot record period.

One Chicago woman is facing charges for this after secretly recording Internal Affairs officers who visited her home after she filed a sexual harassment complaint against an officer. The recording caught the officers suggesting she drop her complaint. As a result, she is facing 15 years in prison.

Laws and practices vary across the country for recording police. Last August, however, the 1^st Circuit Court of Appeals ruled that citizens can record the police when going about their public duties. Currently, a bill is pending in the Illinois General Assembly that would make such recordings allowable if they were done in a public place and those being filmed were speaking at a “volume audible to the unassisted human ear.”

It isn’t clear whether this law could be passed before this spring’s big meetings come about. If not, the state risks looking like a far cry from the “Land of the Free” as they arrest international journalists for recording the protest arrests that are bound to happen.

As it’s been happening with some Occupy protests, Slate.com points out the journalists could be arrested under suspicion of violating the wiretap law, brought to jail and then released—just giving the cops enough time to ruin any potential journalistic coverage of any specific arrest or volatile situation.

You, as a citizen, don’t have the same protection as the press when it comes to recording police, especially in Illinois. While the ACLU has twice challenged the law, their cases have twice been thrown out of court. If you are accused of recording cops in Illinois, the stakes are high and you need someone who knows the laws on your side.

Contact our offices today if you are accused of violating the wiretap law or if you are charged with any criminal offense and have questions.

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In 2003, according to the Chicago Tribute, police arrested more than 500 people in an impromptu Iraq War demonstration, leading a federal judge to call the city’s protest rules an “idiocy”.

During that demonstration, protestors were corralled into a single area and then were arrested on a massive scale, without being given the opportunity to comply with orders to leave. Judge Richard Posner rejected the city’s attempts to have two civil lawsuits involving hundreds of plaintiffs dismissed.

Posner said the bad permit rules and bad decisions from police led to mass confusion. He said that police, “perhaps in some panic, resorted to mass arrests without justification.”

The judge’s rulings have helped spur some action by the city to amend those policies that govern protest permits and impromptu demonstrations. But, some say Mayor Rahm Emanuel is using “fear mongering” to spur support for drastic changes that are reportedly unnecessary. According to NPR, some even believe he is staging an attack on the constitutional right to protest.

What is it that Emanuel wants? Well, for starters he would like the authority to spend money during the international meetings without getting any approval from the City Council. He would also like the Chicago police to have the power to deputize out of state law enforcement. Finally, he would like to place restrictions on where and when protests can occur.

He reportedly wants to cover all of the bases—to prepare for any possible occurrence. “But foreseeing every constitutional contingency is probably impossible,” says Alex Keefe with NPR.

Some are concerned that all of this talk will only spur more active protests. Protestors don’t want to be told about restrictions being placed on their right to assemble and protest, it may only makes things more volatile.

Typically, arrests made during protests like this are for disorderly conduct and related charges. It’s not unusual for people to be arrested and charged when they weren’t doing anything wrong. The 2003 Iraq War protests proved this. Charges in nearly all 500 arrests on that day were later dismissed.

You can’t always be so lucky as to have your criminal charges dropped as part of a massive mistake by the police department. In many or most cases, the help of a local criminal defense attorney is crucial in getting a positive end result.

If you are charged with disorderly conduct or something similar, we may be able to help. Contact us today to discuss the details and what options you have.

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Police sold a kilogram of fake cocaine to suspects in a McDonald’s parking lot in an attempt to arrest them. But when the officers revealed their true identity, one of the suspects rammed the cop car with his own vehicle, “slightly injuring” two of the cops. This caused one officer to fire on the suspect, hitting him as he fled the scene.

The school reportedly went into lock-down when a teacher saw the events unfolding while looking out of a classroom window. Though school officials refuse to say whether the police department warned them about the issue beforehand, it’s not likely if they went into a lockdown situation after a teacher noticed what was going on.

Following the incident, a “small metal fragment” was found outside of the school and close to a classroom window where a teacher had been instructing 25 students.

For many people, it may come as a surprise to know that police often opt for locations like this because a suspect can face more serious charges if caught dealing with drugs in a school zone. Yes, they may be willing to put children at risk in order to bolster the charges against a suspect.

One suspect has been charged with delivery of a controlled substance, and the other has yet to be charged—he is recovering at a nearby hospital.

According to the account from the Chicago Tribune, the police department doesn’t seem to see anything wrong with their actions; they haven’t admitted any wrongdoing or apologized for the poor choice in sting locations.

Police Commander Tim Bosshart says, “When the officers are doing these things, they obviously are going to try to do what is safest, but you can’t control people’s behavior.”

Unfortunately, he seems to miss the point that the problem wasn’t necessarily how the officer handled being rammed with a vehicle, but instead the choice they made to make the deal at a McDonald’s across the street from a school.

A spokesperson for the local Chicago FBI office says that undercover agents must plan so that there is little public safety risk involved in their execution of duties. He said if undercover officers were intending on making an arrest immediately after a deal (said to be a volatile situation), they would “try to find another location” away from a school.

The police often seem to lose a bit of common sense when it comes to arresting suspects and getting their man. If you’ve ever been on the other side of the law, you might know the feeling.

Whether you are wanted for a drug offense or failing to appear, if you have a warrant for your arrest, you don’t want to wait to get caught. Contact our offices today to discuss your options and the best way of handling any outstanding charges while you still have a chance to fix the problem.

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Some Illinois residents struggling to pay off their debt have yet another thing to worry about: getting thrown in jail.

As WBEZ reports, creditors in the state have figured out ways around laws that prevent them from putting debtors in jail, and the number of people being issued arrest warrants linked to unpaid bills is growing. Collection agencies can reportedly file a lawsuit requiring a court appearance, and if the defendant doesn’t show up for their hearing, an arrest warrant can be issued.

The practice has been happening more often in a stagnant economy, and Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigan wants to do something about it.

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State’s Attorney Michael Waller says the comments made by this particular Lake County prosecutor do not reflect his views on the attorney’s office, “nor do they reflect the manner in which my staff has conducted themselves over the last 21 years.” In the past, Waller had called this prosecutor “a prosecutor’s prosecutor.” Now, his tune has changed.

The local sheriff had  demanded the prosecutor be dismissed after some comments that were made to the New York Times. When asked about a case involving a murdered 11 year old girl who was found with DNA not matching the defendant within her, he said the obvious explanation was that the child was sexually active.

As if that wasn’t enough, he is accused of trying to frame the now-freed Jerry Hobbs, who was convicted of killing his 8 year old daughter and her friend. The prosecutor in question said in regards to semen found on the girl (which didn’t match Hobbs), that she may have gotten it inside her while playing near the crime scene, where he said people would go to have sex. This despite the fact that the young victim was fully clothed.

A prosecutor represents the state; they represent the law in a criminal case. And they are there to find justice, no matter how it is served. Justice doesn’t always mean a conviction—it could mean knowing when to let a defendant go in order to pursue stronger suspects. This particular prosecutor doesn’t seem to agree, however.

He is also named in a defamation lawsuit brought by Jerry Hobbs and still maintains that he is convinced of Hobbs’ guilt, despite the fact that the DNA found on Hobbs’ daughter matches a convicted rapist and suspected murderer.

The state can’t allow such a controversial figure represent its interests and act as the long arm of the law. When it comes to enforcing criminal statutes, a fair, knowledgeable, and tactful professional is necessary.

When you are the one facing charges, it can be difficult to see the prosecution as any of these things. And while the ideal is a fair and just state attorney, that isn’t always the reality. Fortunately, your attorney is there to help ensure you are treated fairly.

If you are accused of a crime, whether it’s a drug offense or an assault case, contact our attorney today.

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