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Recent Blog Posts
Off-duty Cop Involved in Hit-and-Run Crash in Chicago
A Chicago cop who was off-duty crashed into a bicyclist in August in the Logan Square neighborhood, reports the Chicago Tribune. Michael Bergeson, 33, stopped his pickup truck after the crash and called police, but when he heard an ambulance approaching, he fled. He failed to notice though that the license plate from his car had been knocked off in the crash. Police found the plate and were able to identify the reckless driver.
Bergeson was charged with leaving the scene of an accident and filing a false police report. Both charges are felonies and may result in prison time and heavy fines. When facing a felony charge, it is always a good idea to contact a skilled criminal defense lawyer. Bergeson also falsely claimed that the woman bicyclist fled the scene after the crash. The 25-year-old woman was knocked unconscious in the crash and suffered injuries to her face and feet and got bruises on her body.
The hit-and-run crash was witnessed by the victim’s boyfriend. The boyfriend saw the truck speeding and driving recklessly. The truck then ran a stop sign and hit the victim’s bicycle, and the woman was thrown off her bike and knocked her head. The off-duty officer got out of his car and asked the victim if she was okay, the witness said. The cop called 911 twice without telling his name, started his truck, drove around the victim and damaged two parked vehicles before he managed to flee. Bergeson has been relieved of his police duties and is currently working in an administrative post with pay.
Chicago police boss says they’re doing better
Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy praised the department’s efforts this year. Earlier in the year, homicides skyrocketed and the department’s crime fighting strategy has been working hard to decrease the murder rate since.
At a news conference at the police headquarters, McCarthy told reporters that although the problem is not completely fixed, the department is doing better and he that needs to be recognized. “I can’t change what happened in the first quarter. What I can do, is to fix it going forward.”
Compared with 2011 at the same time, homicides had increased 66 percent in Chicago by April of 2012. McCarthy shared that that rate had been gradually brought down throughout the year to only about an 18 percent increase from last year.
McCarthy gave credit of the reduction of homicides was given to the city’s decision to demolish more vacant buildings, arrest more gang members, and focus police attention on individuals are individuals that are more likely to commit future crimes. He said that, in general, the city is seeing less overall crime than it has for decades.
$55 million program to cut violence in Chicago
An Illinois state-funded program paid for teenagers across Chicago’s South Side to earn $8.75 this fall passing out flier about non-violence. This program pumped about $55 million into Chicago’s toughest neighborhoods and three suburbs to fight gang violence.
CNN launched a four-month investigation and found that the Neighborhood Recovery Initiative (NRI) paid teens to hand out inner peace promoting fliers and also paid for the at-risk teens to go on field trips to museums, march in a parade with the governor, and attend a yoga class to teach them how to handle stress.
Earlier in the year, state legislators demanded an audit on the program, which is now underway.
Supporters of the program argue that it kept kids off the streets of Chicago’s most dangerous neighborhoods and helped inner city youth become exposed to new cultures, along with encouraging future leaders.
Man charged for fatally shooting his son
A judge has denied bail for a 73-year-old Albany Park man, who is facing murder charges for shooting his son during a fight. The incident happened at the family’s home on the Northwest Side, according to authorities. The Chicago Tribune reported a story on this murder case.
Tim Gilbert, 73, appeared in court on November 27, and the judge ordered that there will be no bail for Gilbert, the Cook County sheriff’s office said. According to Chicago Police Department News Affairs Officer Robert Perez, Gilbert, who lived on the 4900 block of the North Whipple Street in Chicago, was charged with murder in the killing of his son.
The victim in the fight that led to the shooting was 24-year-old Bryan Lopez. According to News Affairs Officer Perez, Lopez was shot on November 15 during a physical fight with his father, Gilbert.
Additional charges for alleged murderer awaiting trial
Kidnapping, rape, robbery, and carjacking are among the charges filed against a man, who is already in jail awaiting his murder trial. According to authorities, the man has been in jail awaiting his trial for slaying a woman since 2009. The Chicago Tribune reported a story on the man and the impressive list of charges against him.
The new charges that Melvin Fagan is facing are not connected to his previous charges for slaying the woman, who was found strangled in a vacant building.
Fagan is now accused of kidnapping a woman and sexually assaulting her for more than two days. The alleged sexual assault took place in March of 2010. In addition to these charges, he is charged in the robbery and carjacking of an elderly man, 76, in December 2011.
Elderly Woman Slain Before Her Home Burning
Investigations regarding the death of an 89-year-old Crest Hill woman continue, as police suspect the woman was slain before her home was torched. The case is being looked into as a homicide after an autopsy, according to police. The story was reported by the Chicago Tribune.
Dorothy Dumyahn, 89, was found dead in her burning home on November 18. Crest Hill Deputy Police Chief Ed Clark said police are investigating the case as homicide based on an autopsy report from Nov. 19. According to Clark, the fire was set deliberately, and it was an attempt to cover up the murder.
Dumyahn’s one-story home on Caton Farm Road burned well enough for people to smell the ashes days later. With the windows and doors boarded up and piles of debris at the site, the burned down building is a sad reminder of what happened there.
According to Dumyahn’s neighbor, she was a nice old lady.
Fire Protection District Battalion Chief Paul Hertzmann said there was heavy smoke coming from the building when firefighters got to the scene. Crews found the 89-year-old Dumyahn inside and brought her out of the fire, but they were not able to resuscicate, according to Hertzmann.
Bartender Stabbed Chasing a Man
A bartender in the Magnificent Mile heard a chilling scream and saw a man run through the Westin Hotel and to the streets, and reacting on pure instinct, he ran after the man. The chase ended in the bartender getting knifed, but he survived the incident. The Chicago Tribune reported a story about the chase that took an ugly turn.
Bradford Burner, 35, who was tending the bar at Westin Hotel Grill when he heard the scream said it was ”bone-chilling.” Burner pursued the subject on the streets, closing in on the man near some shops at the Hancock building. He said the man displayed a knife when Burner got closer.
“Someone yelled something. The gentleman turned around (and) saw me coming toward him,” Burner told the Chicago Tribune.
The next thing Burner knew was that the man was coming at him with a knife. Burner was cut on his chest, and he fell to the sidewalk after getting knifed.
Silent Witnesses makes Police Job Harder
It is not unusual to hear the saying “snitches get stitches” around the streets of Chicago. While it may sound like a child’s rhyme, it is a serious and threatening statement that witnesses to criminal acts. This can be especially daunting when someone witnesses a crime of violence.
Most people believe that it is the job of the police to solve the rising crimes and there is very little community trust in the police. Residents of high crime areas do not feel that the police are there to serve and protect and would rather not make their jobs easier by telling what they have seen. This reluctance to tell is just what police say makes it even harder to solve crimes that happen every day in these communities.
Chicago Police Department statistics state that arrests have been made in approximately 30 percent of shooting homicides and over 70 percent of nonfatal shootings continue to go unsolved. Not only are witnesses unwilling to talk but often times the victims themselves are unwilling to tell even when they know the perpetrator of the crime. These numbers are astounding. Police are afraid that when the perpetrators go unpunished, they will continue to victimize other people.
Ceasefire Impact Unknown
According to the Sun Times, there is little known about the impact of the ceasefire within the city. There may be significant changes in the gang related killings of the area, but there may not be depending on the time frame and how they are doing it.
Police Supt. Garry McCarthy says it’s still a work and progress and an anonymous person said it may take two weeks or more in order to find out if this kind of solution is really working in the community.
Tio Hardiman believes it’s working in helping with the crime rate in areas that are being worked with in this pilot program. He thinks that this will help with the crime and that it will also make things easier for everyone if the program works for this city. He understands that some officers are reluctant to do the program because it includes ex-convicts to help with the program. He also believes it’s a two way street and that the police departments also need to communicate with them so they can see how well the program is working for them.
First time offenders get second chance with DuPage program
DuPage County has put in place a new way of thinking for first-time offenders. The new program allows these first time offenders to have a felony conviction wiped from their record.
Last week, State’s Attorney Bob Berlin announced a pretrial diversion. Berlin said the new program would do more to rehabilitate low-level felons and free up resources to fight for intense, violent crime. Since Berlin took office two years ago, this new program is based off of similar efforts in Kane, McHenry, and Cook counties, but it slightly unique.
To be eligible, defendants must be first time offenders charged with nonviolent felonies including retail theft or forgery, and be referred for the program by their own attorney or the state’s attorney’s office. Eligible candidates are them interviewed by a program director, after which they appear before a panel of citizens. In each setting, the defendant must take responsibility for his or her crime. A recommendation is made by the panel, and Berlin’s office makes the final decision whether or not to accept the candidate.
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