chicagosun-times--2020-07-20--70 shot, 10 fatally, in Chicago this weekend

Ten people were killed and 60 others , including 10 minors , were wounded in shootings across Chicago over the weekend .
The numbers surpassed those of the same weekend last year , when 43 people were shot , three of them fatally .
Last weekend , 64 people were shot across the city , 13 of them fatally .
Six of those victims were teenagers and one teen was killed .
• The latest fatal shooting killed two men and wounded three others late Sunday night in Morgan Park on the Far South Side .
The shooting happened about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ South Carpenter Street , Chicago police said .
A group of people were outside when someone fired shots .
A 26-year-old and 41-year-old man suffered fatal gunshot wounds .
Another 26-year-old , man a 37-year-old man and a 48-year-old man were also struck by bullets and taken to area hospitals , police said .
The younger man was in critical condition .
• A shooting about an hour earlier left a man dead in Chatham on the South Side .
About 10:45 p.m. , the 21-year-old was standing outside a vehicle in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ when he was shot in the back as another vehicle drove by , police said .
The man was taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center , where he died .
• Earlier , a man was killed in Little Village on the Southwest Side .
The 20-year-old was shot about 2:55 a.m. in the 3200 block of West Cermak Road , according to police .
He was dropped off at Mount Sinai Hospital with gunshot wounds to his right cheek and the right side of his abdomen and pronounced dead a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ minutes before that , a man was killed and a woman was injured in the Loop .
They were in a vehicle heading north in the 300 block of North Wabash Avenue about 2:35 a.m. when they saw a group of males on the east side of the bridge over the Chicago River arguing with someone in the middle of the street , according to police .
The male in the street fired a handgun toward the group , but hit the man and woman in the vehicle .
The victims drove to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , where they flagged down police officers and asked for medical attention .
The man , 35-year-old Gregory Crafword of Maywood , was shot in the neck and taken to Northwestern Memorial Hospital , where he died , according to police and the Cook County medical examiner ’ s office .
The woman , 25 , was shot in both arms and taken to Northwestern in serious condition .
• On Saturday morning , a man was shot to death in Humboldt Park on the West Side .
Anji Webster , 26 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the 3400 block of West Ohio Street , authorities said .
He was pronounced dead at the scene .
• About three hours earlier , another man was killed in Little Village .
Miguel Rios , 18 , was driving south on Washtenaw Avenue at 3:28 a.m. when someone shot at him , authorities said .
He was struck in the armpit and crashed the vehicle into a tree in the 2600 block of West 24th Street .
Rios , who lived in Gage Park , was pronounced dead at the scene @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that , one man was fatally shot and four other people were injured in Lawndale on the West Side .
The group was standing on the sidewalk and street at 3:12 a.m. in the 1600 block of South Keeler Avenue when two males fired shots , officials said .
Twan Thigpen , 25 , was shot in the chest and taken to Mount Sinai Hospital , where he was pronounced dead .
A 36-year-old woman was shot in the left leg , a 32-year-old man was shot in the right arm , police @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ages were not immediately known , were also each shot in the right leg .
All four were taken to Mount Sinai Hospital in good condition .
• Nearly two hours earlier , a 67-year-old man was fatally shot in Austin on the West Side .
Jimmy Blumingburg was walking on the sidewalk about 12:30 a.m. in the 4900 block of West Hubbard Street when someone fired shots from a vacant lot , officials said .
Blumingburg was shot in the neck and pronounced dead at Stroger Hospital .
• The weekend ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ injured another Friday night in Chatham on the South Side .
They were in a first floor apartment about 9:52 p.m. in the 8200 block of South Drexel Avenue when a male kicked in the door and opened fire , authorities said .
Derek Teague , 60 , was shot in the neck and pronounced dead at the scene .
He lived in Bronzeville .
A 23-year-old man was hit in the arm and taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center in fair condition , according to police .
• Two preteen @ @ @ @ @ @ @ afternoon in Gresham on the South Side .
Multiple people were sitting outside a home in the 8200 block of South Ada Street when someone opened fire from a vehicle just after 4:30 p.m. , according to police .
The boys , 10 and 11 , were both taken to Comer Children ’ s Hospital in good condition .
The 10-year-old was shot in the ankle and calf , while the 11-year-old was struck in the arm .
A 27-year-old man was shot in the leg and arm and taken to the University @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was also in good condition , police said .
• Sunday evening , three people were shot in West Garfield Park , including a 17-year-old boy .
He and two men , 19 and 26 , were walking in an alley about 9:32 p.m. in the 100 block of North Keeler Avenue when someone in a dark sedan unleashed gunfire , police said .
All three people were hospitalized in good condition .
The teen was struck in the leg and taken to Stroger Hospital .
The 26-year-old man was shot in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
The 19-year-old man was grazed in the face and was taken to Norwegian-American Hospital .
• A 14-year-old boy was shot Saturday night in Gresham on the South Side .
He was on the sidewalk about 9:30 p.m. in the 7600 block of South Green Street when someone approached with a handgun and fired shots , according to police .
The teen was hit in the upper right side of his back and his right shoulder and taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center in good condition .
• Saturday afternoon @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dice game in Lawndale .
The teens , 14 and 17 , were playing dice about 3:35 p.m. on a sidewalk in the 1500 block of South Sawyer Avenue when someone in a vehicle pulled up and opened fire , police said .
The 17-year-old was shot in the groin and the 14-year-old was struck in the buttocks .
Both were taken to Mount Sinai Hospital , where they were in good condition .
• Another teenage boy was shot early Saturday at a gas station in Belmont Central on the Northwest Side @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a gas station about 2:35 a.m. in the 5500 block of West Diversey Avenue when someone fired shots from a black SUV , according to police .
The boy was shot in the back and taken to Community First Medical Center .
He was transferred to Stroger Hospital in fair condition .
• About an hour and a half before that , another 14-year-old was wounded in Albany Park on the Northwest Side .
The boy was shot in the left hand at 12:58 a.m. in the 3600 block of West Argyle Street @ @ @ @ @ @ @ tell police about the circumstances of the shooting .
He was dropped off at Swedish Covenant Hospital and transferred to Lurie Children ’ s Hospital in good condition .
• On Friday night , another teen was shot in Englewood on the South Side .
The 17-year-old was standing on the sidewalk about 9:47 p.m. in the 6900 block of South Lafayette Avenue when someone fired shots from a black sedan , police said .
The boy was struck in the leg and arm and was taken to the University of Chicago Medical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ weekend ’ s first shooting wounded three people , including a 14-year-old boy , in Chatham .
The trio was on the sidewalk about 5:30 p.m. in the 8200 block of South Drexel when a vehicle drove up and someone inside opened fire , police said .
The teen was struck in the face and taken to Comer Children ’ s Hospital .
A 21-year-old man was struck in the arm , and a woman , 27 , was shot in the buttocks .
They were taken to the University of Chicago Medical @ @ @ @ @ @ @ trio was transported in serious-to-critical condition but stabilized at the hospital .
• Two people were injured in expressway shootings in Chicago on Saturday .
One person was shot just before 5 a.m. on Interstate 90/94 on the Ontario feeder ramp on the Near North Side , state police said .
Responding officers found one person with a non-life threatening gunshot wound .
That person was taken to an area hospital for treatment .
Saturday afternoon , another person was shot on Interstate 57 in Morgan Park , state police said .
Troopers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the shooting , and found a driver with life-threatening injuries ; their passenger wasn ’ t hurt .
• Three people were wounded in a single shooting Friday night in Roseland on the South Side .
They were hanging out on the sidewalk about 9:35 p.m. in the 10900 block of South Wentworth Avenue when someone fired shots from a red sedan , police said .
Two 49-year-olds were each struck in the leg and taken to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn in good condition .
The third man , 42 , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to Roseland Community Hospital in good condition .
At least 31 other people were injured by gunfire throughout Chicago between 5 p.m. Friday and 5 a.m. Monday .
Read more on crime , and track the city ’ s homicides .


chicagosun-times--2020-07-20--At Trump’s tower here, the name is no bargain

It doesn ’ t take so much do-re-mi to buy into Chicago ’ s Trump International Hotel & Tower as it once did , and that ’ s striking sour notes for owners in the building .
Prices have fallen so hard that , if you have a mind to , you can get a unit on the cheap , relatively speaking .
Some condos that are hotel rooms in the 98-story building can be had for less than $ 200,000 .
But buyer beware .
Gail Lissner , managing director at Integra Realty Resources , said the hotel rooms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ been bad investments , something made worse by the pandemic .
After the hotel ’ s management fees , which public listings report can run more than $ 2,000 a month , taxes and the interest on your loan , there isn ’ t much left of your share of rental income .
That ’ s just the start of problems afflicting the tower that our current president wrought in Chicago , completing the construction in 2009 .
Chortle if you must , but remember that not all of the woes land on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ They are felt by the individual owners at 401 N. Wabash Ave. who put a chunk of their assets into this venture , probably for reasons apart from politics .
In aligning themselves with Trump , they chose a faithless business partner .
At any given time , some will be looking to sell their units , and they must wince every time he assails Chicago , comparing its violence to Afghanistan .
You ’ d think the president would soft-pedal those criticisms in deference to his — er , his family ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that is the building itself , a generally well-regarded citizen of the skyline designed by Chicago ’ s Adrian Smith that Trump later marred by affixing his name to it .
The property contains a highly rated hotel and residential condos boasting premium views and features .
“ It ’ s a very nice property , and they operate it well , ” Lissner said .
“ The staff is extremely solicitous and well-trained .
The negative is the name .
It ’ s like a lightning rod.
” A longtime resident said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ with serious cleaning , limits of four people on an elevator and masks a must-have .
“ They haven ’ t cut back on service , ” he said .
Yet the property ’ s Trump handicap has grown during the man ’ s presidency .
Lissner crunched Midwest Real Estate Data and found sales of the residences for the first half of this year averaged $ 566 a square foot , down 42 % from the same months two years ago and 25 % from 2019 .
The prices are their lowest @ @ @ @ @ @ @ its attendant housing bust .
The building in the best of times has cleared its benchmark of $ 800 a square foot but has seldom reached its aspirations of $ 1,000 .
But other towers have views and great finishes without a name odious or alarming to most buyers .
Protests in front of the Trump building almost every other day can ’ t be good for the prices therein .
Lissner said along with the distinctive Trump factors , the building must contend with a general softening in downtown condo prices that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ competition from newer high-rises that don ’ t invite vulgar attention .
The hotel-condo units have the added burden of a crushed travel market .
Listings of these units on Realtor.com indicate many have been marketed for months , with prices that have fallen more than 30 % in the last couple of years .
We don ’ t know exactly how badly the Trump hotel is doing , but the travel research firm STR reports that among all Chicago luxury hotels , room occupancies were just 3 % in April and 4.5 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ this time , those hotels were more than 80 % full .
Lastly , there ’ s the tower ’ s retail space , which Trump has never been able to lease .
He sought Michigan Avenue prices for space unlikely to draw Michigan Avenue traffic .
Real estate agents , normally a loquacious group when it comes to buildings that can pull in big commissions , don ’ t want to say much about Trump tower .
Three who have listings there didn ’ t return calls or declined to discuss the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ River North told me she shuns the building because of her political beliefs .
I wanted the perspective of the Trump Organization and the tower ’ s condo association , but they did not return messages .
More ’ s the pity — I ’ d love to know if the condo owners have the gumption or the power to yank those 20-foot-tall Trump letters off the building .
While the nation ’ s in a fit of pulling down monuments , it seems odd to leave alone one man ’ s garish @ @ @ @

It doesn’t take so much do-re-mi to buy into Chicago’s Trump International Hotel & Tower as it once did, and that’s striking sour notes for owners in the building.
Prices have fallen so hard that, if you have a mind to, you can get a unit on the cheap, relatively speaking. Some condos that are hotel rooms in the 98-story building can be had for less than $200,000.
But buyer beware. Gail Lissner, managing director at Integra Realty Resources, said the hotel rooms are cheap because they’ve historically been bad investments, something made worse by the pandemic.
After the hotel’s management fees, which public listings report can run more than $2,000 a month, taxes and the interest on your loan, there isn’t much left of your share of rental income.
That’s just the start of problems afflicting the tower that our current president wrought in Chicago, completing the construction in 2009. Chortle if you must, but remember that not all of the woes land on Donald Trump and his Trump Organization.
They are felt by the individual owners at 401 N. Wabash Ave. who put a chunk of their assets into this venture, probably for reasons apart from politics.
In aligning themselves with Trump, they chose a faithless business partner. At any given time, some will be looking to sell their units, and they must wince every time he assails Chicago, comparing its violence to Afghanistan. You’d think the president would soft-pedal those criticisms in deference to his — er, his family’s — business.
Chicago Enterprise bug Chicago Enterprise
Apart from all that is the building itself, a generally well-regarded citizen of the skyline designed by Chicago’s Adrian Smith that Trump later marred by affixing his name to it. The property contains a highly rated hotel and residential condos boasting premium views and features.
“It’s a very nice property, and they operate it well,” Lissner said. “The staff is extremely solicitous and well-trained. The negative is the name. It’s like a lightning rod.” A longtime resident said the building handles the coronavirus well, with serious cleaning, limits of four people on an elevator and masks a must-have. “They haven’t cut back on service,” he said.
Yet the property’s Trump handicap has grown during the man’s presidency. Lissner crunched Midwest Real Estate Data and found sales of the residences for the first half of this year averaged $566 a square foot, down 42% from the same months two years ago and 25% from 2019.
The prices are their lowest since the Great Recession of 2008 and its attendant housing bust. The building in the best of times has cleared its benchmark of $800 a square foot but has seldom reached its aspirations of $1,000.
But other towers have views and great finishes without a name odious or alarming to most buyers. Protests in front of the Trump building almost every other day can’t be good for the prices therein.
Lissner said along with the distinctive Trump factors, the building must contend with a general softening in downtown condo prices that has worsened with the pandemic, plus competition from newer high-rises that don’t invite vulgar attention.
The hotel-condo units have the added burden of a crushed travel market. Listings of these units on Realtor.com indicate many have been marketed for months, with prices that have fallen more than 30% in the last couple of years. We don’t know exactly how badly the Trump hotel is doing, but the travel research firm STR reports that among all Chicago luxury hotels, room occupancies were just 3% in April and 4.5% in May. Last year at this time, those hotels were more than 80% full.
Lastly, there’s the tower’s retail space, which Trump has never been able to lease. He sought Michigan Avenue prices for space unlikely to draw Michigan Avenue traffic.
Real estate agents, normally a loquacious group when it comes to buildings that can pull in big commissions, don’t want to say much about Trump tower. Three who have listings there didn’t return calls or declined to discuss the property. A prominent agent working in River North told me she shuns the building because of her political beliefs.
I wanted the perspective of the Trump Organization and the tower’s condo association, but they did not return messages. More’s the pity — I’d love to know if the condo owners have the gumption or the power to yank those 20-foot-tall Trump letters off the building. While the nation’s in a fit of pulling down monuments, it seems odd to leave alone one man’s garish celebration of himself.


chicagosun-times--2020-07-20--Bricks thrown through window of Ald. Ray Lopez’s Brighton Park office

Two people threw bricks through the window of Ald .
Ray Lopez ’ s ( 15th ) office Sunday in Brighton Park on the Southwest Side .
They were seen throwing the bricks at 11:43 p.m. at the office , 2736 W. 47th St. , according to Chicago police .
The suspects ran away and no one is in custody as Area One detectives investigate , police said .
Lopez called out Mayor Lori Lightfoot in a tweet about the incident early Monday .
“ When you Mayor , refuse to call out the terror attacks on our communities , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ feel more emboldened to continue their reign , ” Lopez wrote .
“ Glass can be replaced , peace of mind and security can not .
Your silence is destroying this city !
” The incident comes more than a week after someone threw a brick into Lopez ’ s Brighton Park home and set fire to a neighbor ’ s garage on July 9 .
Lopez told the Sun-Times he blamed gang members for that incident , stating that it stemmed from a confrontation he had with gang members hours earlier in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Read more on crime , and track the city ’ s homicides .

Two people threw bricks through the window of Ald. Ray Lopez’s (15th) office Sunday in Brighton Park on the Southwest Side.
They were seen throwing the bricks at 11:43 p.m. at the office, 2736 W. 47th St., according to Chicago police.
The suspects ran away and no one is in custody as Area One detectives investigate, police said.
Lopez called out Mayor Lori Lightfoot in a tweet about the incident early Monday.
“When you Mayor, refuse to call out the terror attacks on our communities, especially on their electeds, criminals only feel more emboldened to continue their reign,” Lopez wrote. “Glass can be replaced, peace of mind and security cannot. Your silence is destroying this city!”
Two people threw bricks through the window of Ald. Ray Lopez’s 15th Ward office, 2736 W. 47th St. Ald. Ray Lopez via Twitter
Lightfoot on Monday morning said attacks on any elected official can’t be tolerated, and promised to provide the resources needed to protect Lopez’s home and ward office.
The incident comes more than a week after someone threw a brick into Lopez’s Brighton Park home and set fire to a neighbor’s garage on July 9.
Lopez told the Sun-Times he blamed gang members for that incident, stating that it stemmed from a confrontation he had with gang members hours earlier in the 4300 block of Fairfield Avenue.
Contributing: Fran Spielman
When you Mayor, refuse to call out the terror attacks on our communities, especially on their electeds, criminals only feel more emboldened to continue their reign. Glass can be replaced, peace of mind and security cannot. Your silence is destroying this city! pic.twitter.com/n0lBBgnb9o — Ald. Raymond Lopez (@RLopez15thWard) July 20, 2020
Read more on crime, and track the city’s homicides.


chicagosun-times--2020-07-20--As violence skyrockets in Chicago, Trump’s ‘police state’ strategy isn’t the solution

In Chicago , 10 people were killed and 60 others , including 10 minors , were wounded in shootings over the weekend — and it was , shockingly , business as usual .
Chicago has now rung up double-digit gun killings in seven of the last nine weekends after going more than two years without one weekend in double digits , according to Sun-Times reporting .
We ’ ve sounded the alarm about this historic — and tragic — surge in recent weeks : A police slowdown seems to be enabling violent criminals to roam the streets more freely , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Brown said Monday , civic unrest in parts of the city is forcing his department to divert resources from the South and West sides , where gun violence is most rampant .
The city ’ s homicide count has surpassed 400 .
If things continue at the rate we ’ ve seen in recent weeks , Chicago will easily surpass the nearly 800 killings we saw in 2016 — the city ’ s deadliest year in more than two decades .
Sadly , Chicago is not alone .
Shootings are up 95 % @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and 44 % in New York .
President Donald Trump ’ s administration and Congress could do a lot to curb gun violence in Chicago and other big cities .
Rather than help , though , the president has decided to get in the way .
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is planning to send dozens of federal agents to Chicago this week , and the agency ’ s boss won ’ t say exactly what they ’ ll be up to .
“ I don ’ t need invitations by state @ @ @ @ @ @ @ job , ” Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad F. Wolf said on Monday .
“ We ’ re going to do that whether they like us there or not.
” On Monday evening , Mayor Lori Lightfoot was aiming to prevent things from going off the tracks , asking the president to work with the city to deploy any additional law enforcement resources that might arrive .
“ What we do not need , and what will certainly make our community less safe is secret federal agents deployed to Chicago , ” she @ @ @ @ @ @ @ peaceful protesters in Portland , Oregon , by armed and uninvited federal agents without insignia and in unmarked vehicles have resulted in lawsuits filed by Oregon ’ s attorney general and the ACLU .
It ’ s just another reminder the entire blustering Trump administration has no idea what it ’ s doing .
Rambo isn ’ t going to help us .
Instead , the federal government should be pursuing sensible short-term and long-term strategies to quell violence at the same time the Chicago Police Department should be aiming to rebuild morale @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to residents who simply don ’ t trust the cops , as Brown has advocated .
Target the guns used in crimes The short-term federal strategy should be to target crime guns , as Jens Ludwig , director of the University of Chicago ’ s Crime Lab told us on Monday .
Virtually all guns used in crimes on Chicago streets come from the suburbs or other states , mostly states with looser gun laws .
That ’ s an immediate cause of Chicago ’ s gun violence .
Yet , for political @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the Bureau of Alcohol , Tobacco , Firearms and Explosives ’ ability to monitor gun dealers to make sure they are not shoveling guns out the back door to criminals .
Which they are .
A number of potentially effective measures to address gun violence are pending in the U.S. House of Representatives or already have been sent to the Senate , where they sit and rot .
Among those measures promoted by Lightfoot on Monday , are beefing up the ATF and reordering its priorities to go harder after illegal guns ; @ @ @ @ @ @ @ against those who sell and possess illegal guns ; closing gun law loopholes so that background checks are truly universal , and passing the Zero Tolerance for Domestic Abusers Act — to further take guns out of the most irresponsible hands .
If Trump really wants to help , this is his to-do list .
But virtually no gun-related legislation will make it out of committee in the Republican-controlled Senate .
The sole measure that stands a chance would beef up funding for research into the causes of gun violence .
This is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Mitch McConnell , R-Ky. , has taken more than $ 1 million from the National Rifle Association .
Over the longer term , the solution to gun violence in Chicago and every big city is rooted in greater economic justice .
Instead of creating a police state of the kind Trump so seems to admire , with armed federal agents on every corner , the federal government could do so much more to improve schools , drug rehab and mental health programs , job training and other basic social programs .
This year @ @ @ @ @ @ @ billion .
Just four percent of that would be $ 28.8 billion .
Imagine how many more teachers , mental health counselors , after-school youth programs , police community outreach workers and summer jobs programs our nation could hire and create with that kind of money .
But we suppose Trump would accuse us of trying to “ defund ” the Pentagon .
In Illinois , the state Legislature should enact the Block Illegal Gun Ownership bill , which would expand background checks to include all gun sales , helping to keep guns @ @ @ @ @ @ @ legislation might come up in the six-day November veto session , but it could be crowded out by emergency COVID-19 measures , said state Sen. Julie Morrison , D-Deerfield , who is sponsoring it in the Senate .
As for Chicago , the city should continue to work to improve the fractured relations between police and communities .
It didn ’ t help that on Sunday FOP President John Catanzara outrageously asked Trump to help control the “ chaos.
” Good police work — not a police state — is essential to bringing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have the means as a city and a nation to do so much more .

In Chicago, 10 people were killed and 60 others, including 10 minors, were wounded in shootings over the weekend — and it was, shockingly, business as usual.
Chicago has now rung up double-digit gun killings in seven of the last nine weekends after going more than two years without one weekend in double digits, according to Sun-Times reporting.
We’ve sounded the alarm about this historic — and tragic — surge in recent weeks: A police slowdown seems to be enabling violent criminals to roam the streets more freely, and, as police Supt. David Brown said Monday, civic unrest in parts of the city is forcing his department to divert resources from the South and West sides, where gun violence is most rampant.
The city’s homicide count has surpassed 400. If things continue at the rate we’ve seen in recent weeks, Chicago will easily surpass the nearly 800 killings we saw in 2016 — the city’s deadliest year in more than two decades.
Sadly, Chicago is not alone.
Shootings are up 95% in Milwaukee, 57% in Philadelphia and 44% in New York.
Enter President Rambo
President Donald Trump’s administration and Congress could do a lot to curb gun violence in Chicago and other big cities. Rather than help, though, the president has decided to get in the way.
The U.S. Department of Homeland Security is planning to send dozens of federal agents to Chicago this week, and the agency’s boss won’t say exactly what they’ll be up to. “I don’t need invitations by state mayors or state governors to do our job,” Acting Homeland Security Secretary Chad F. Wolf said on Monday. “We’re going to do that whether they like us there or not.”
On Monday evening, Mayor Lori Lightfoot was aiming to prevent things from going off the tracks, asking the president to work with the city to deploy any additional law enforcement resources that might arrive. “What we do not need, and what will certainly make our community less safe is secret federal agents deployed to Chicago,” she wrote.
Earlier attacks this month on peaceful protesters in Portland, Oregon, by armed and uninvited federal agents without insignia and in unmarked vehicles have resulted in lawsuits filed by Oregon’s attorney general and the ACLU. It’s just another reminder the entire blustering Trump administration has no idea what it’s doing.
Rambo isn’t going to help us. Instead, the federal government should be pursuing sensible short-term and long-term strategies to quell violence at the same time the Chicago Police Department should be aiming to rebuild morale within its ranks and build bridges back to residents who simply don’t trust the cops, as Brown has advocated.
Target the guns used in crimes
The short-term federal strategy should be to target crime guns, as Jens Ludwig, director of the University of Chicago’s Crime Lab told us on Monday.
Virtually all guns used in crimes on Chicago streets come from the suburbs or other states, mostly states with looser gun laws. That’s an immediate cause of Chicago’s gun violence. Yet, for political reasons, the federal government has handcuffed the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives’ ability to monitor gun dealers to make sure they are not shoveling guns out the back door to criminals.
Which they are.
A number of potentially effective measures to address gun violence are pending in the U.S. House of Representatives or already have been sent to the Senate, where they sit and rot.
Among those measures promoted by Lightfoot on Monday, are beefing up the ATF and reordering its priorities to go harder after illegal guns; assigning more federal prosecutors to pursue charges against those who sell and possess illegal guns; closing gun law loopholes so that background checks are truly universal, and passing the Zero Tolerance for Domestic Abusers Act — to further take guns out of the most irresponsible hands.
If Trump really wants to help, this is his to-do list.
But virtually no gun-related legislation will make it out of committee in the Republican-controlled Senate. The sole measure that stands a chance would beef up funding for research into the causes of gun violence.
This is where we should note that Senate President Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has taken more than $1 million from the National Rifle Association.
Economic justice
Over the longer term, the solution to gun violence in Chicago and every big city is rooted in greater economic justice.
Instead of creating a police state of the kind Trump so seems to admire, with armed federal agents on every corner, the federal government could do so much more to improve schools, drug rehab and mental health programs, job training and other basic social programs.
This year’s Pentagon budget is $721.5 billion. Just four percent of that would be $28.8 billion. Imagine how many more teachers, mental health counselors, after-school youth programs, police community outreach workers and summer jobs programs our nation could hire and create with that kind of money.
But we suppose Trump would accuse us of trying to “defund” the Pentagon.
Background checks bill
In Illinois, the state Legislature should enact the Block Illegal Gun Ownership bill, which would expand background checks to include all gun sales, helping to keep guns out of the wrong hands. The legislation might come up in the six-day November veto session, but it could be crowded out by emergency COVID-19 measures, said state Sen. Julie Morrison, D-Deerfield, who is sponsoring it in the Senate.
As for Chicago, the city should continue to work to improve the fractured relations between police and communities. It didn’t help that on Sunday FOP President John Catanzara outrageously asked Trump to help control the “chaos.”
Good police work — not a police state — is essential to bringing down crime rates. But we also have the means as a city and a nation to do so much more.
Send letters to letters@suntimes.com.


chicagosun-times--2020-07-20--City tightens rules on bars, restaurants, gyms after COVID-19 spike (LIVE UPDATES)

Lightfoot tightens regulations on bars , restaurants , gyms after COVID-19 spike among young people Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Monday tightened regulations on Chicago bars , restaurants , gyms and personal services to prevent a spike of coronavirus among young people from turning into a dangerous surge .
• Bars , taverns breweries and other establishments without a retail food license that serve alcohol for on-site consumption will be prohibited from serving their customers indoors .
• Restaurants will be permitted to continue to serve alcohol , so long as they strictly enforce the city ’ s regulations .
• @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at restaurants , bars , taverns and breweries will be reduced from 10 people to six .
• Indoor fitness classes will be limited to a maximum of 10 people .
• Facials , shaves and other personal services requiring the removal of face coverings will no longer be permitted .
• Residential property managers will be asked to limit guest entry to five-per-unit to avoid indoor gatherings and parties .
Last week , Lightfoot warned of a rollback unless young people who account for 30 percent of new COVID cases in the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ full report from City Hall reporter Fran Spielman here .
7:13 p.m. Republicans mandate at-home COVID-19 pre-convention test for attendees as cases spike in Florida With COVID-19 cases spiking in Florida , Republican convention goers will have to take an “ in-home ” COVID-19 test before they depart for Jacksonville , paid for by the Republican National Committee , the Chicago Sun-Times has learned .
Conventiongoers will have to agree to be tested twice — at home and when they get to Florida .
This comes as President Donald Trump — who moved @ @ @ @ @ @ @ North Carolina to escape coronavirus pandemic restrictions — is confronted with the reality that Florida COVID-19 cases are surging at some 10,000-a-day .
The RNC convention memo , obtained by the Sun-Times , also notes officials are cutting back on the number of people who can attend Jacksonville events , limiting the attendance of alternate delegates and guests .
6:01 p.m. CPS could lose $ 10M to private schools , district says in lawsuit against Betsy DeVos over coronavirus funding Chicago Public Schools has joined a federal lawsuit with 12 other states , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Betsy DeVos over her insistence that public school districts share more of their federal coronavirus relief funding with private schools .
The complaint centers around more than $ 13 billion earmarked for schools in the Coronavirus Aid , Relief , and Economic Security Act , known as the CARES Act , which Congress passed in late March .
The legislation calls for states and school districts to receive money based on how much Title I funding they ’ re allotted to serve low-income students , the lawsuit says .
But DeVos , the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ be distributed based on a school ’ s total number of students , which would divert money from public schools serving children from low-income families to wealthier private schools .
CPS ’ CARES Act allotment is $ 205 million of the $ 569.5 million earmarked for Illinois .
Officials estimate CPS would lose about $ 10 million if DeVos ’ distribution guidelines stand .
5:24 p.m. Illinois sees another day of more than 1,000 new COVID-19 cases Illinois saw 1,173 new COVID-19 infections on Monday , the fifth day in the past week @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 1,000 new cases .
Despite the uptick in infections , the state ’ s death toll from COVID-19 remained relatively low , with only six new deaths reported , the second consecutive day with that number .
The seven-day positivity rate also crept up a hair to 3 % , from 2.9 % over the weekend The uptick in cases comes as Gov .
J.B. Pritzker has voiced concerns that the state is moving backward , worries he repeated on Monday .
So far in July , health officials have reported eight days @ @ @ @ @ @ @ compared to only two such days in all of June .
The latest batch of new cases brings the daily average so far this month to 978 .
The fatality rate has been a different story .
So far , the state is averaging about 19 a day in July , down sharply from the 100 a day in May .
The state ’ s death toll now stands at 7,301 , bringing the average to about 58 deaths a day since mid-March .
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic , drive-in movies have been @ @ @ @ @ @ @ company says a floating cinema allowing people to watch from mini-boats will be making appearances in a number of places around the country , including Chicago .
Beyond Cinema , an Australian production company , said the Chicago run for Floating Boat Cinema is scheduled for Sept. 9-13 .
The exact location has not yet been announced , nor has the list of movies to be screened .
The cinema will be made up of 12 to 24 mini-boats , each holding up to eight people .
2:26 p.m. Big U.S. companies got @ @ @ @ @ @ @ NEW YORK — Ever since the U.S. government launched its emergency lending program for small businesses on April 3 , there have been complaints that bigger companies had their loans approved and disbursed more quickly .
There is now evidence to back up those complaints .
An Associated Press analysis of Small Business Administration ’ s $ 659 billion Paycheck Protection Program shows that nearly a third of the loans approved in the program ’ s first week ranged from $ 150,000 to $ 10 million , the maximum allowed .
In a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 27 , such loans made up just 7.4 % of the total .
The average loan size fell from $ 257,240 on April 10 to nearly $ 105,000 as of July 17 , according to the SBA .
The PPP made very low-interest loans available to any business — or any franchisee of a business — with under 500 employees .
The loans would be forgiven if most of the money was used to keep employees on payroll .
LONDON — Scientists at Oxford University say their experimental coronavirus vaccine has been shown @ @ @ @ @ @ @ protective immune response in hundreds of people who got the shot .
British researchers first began testing the vaccine in April in about 1,000 people , half of whom got the experimental vaccine .
Such early trials are designed to evaluate safety and see what kind of immune response was provoked , but can ’ t tell if the vaccine truly protects .
In research published Monday in the journal Lancet , scientists said that they found their experimental COVID-19 vaccine produced a dual immune response in people aged 18 to 55 that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ were immunized .
“ We are seeing good immune response in almost everybody , ” said Dr. Adrian Hill , director of the Jenner Institute at Oxford University .
“ What this vaccine does particularly well is trigger both arms of the immune system , ” he said .
10:35 a.m. What we don ’ t know about how COVID-19 affects kids What role children play in the coronavirus pandemic is the hot-button question of the summer as kids relish their free time while schools labor over how to resume classes .
The @ @ @ @ @ @ @ very clear , ” but many doctors who specialize in pediatrics and infectious diseases say much of the evidence is inconclusive .
“ There are still a lot of unanswered questions .
That is the biggest challenge , ” said Dr. Sonja Rasmussen , a pediatrics professor at the University of Florida and former scientist at the U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention .
Several studies suggest , but don ’ t prove , that children are less likely to become infected than adults and more likely to have only mild symptoms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ China , where the outbreak began last winter , found that fewer than 2 % of cases were in children .
Later reports suggest between 5 % and 8 % of U.S. cases are in kids .
Through July 9 , about 200,000 kids had tested positive in the U.S. , according to a count based on state reports by the American Academy of Pediatrics .
The number of kids who have been infected is almost certainly far higher than that though , experts say , because those with mild or no symptoms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The CDC says that 228 children and teens through age 17 have died from the disease in the U.S. as of Thursday .
More than 138,000 Americans have died in total , and there have been more than 3.6 million confirmed cases .
8:43 a.m. ‘ A dangerous environment ’ : As churches reopen , coronavirus outbreaks are sprouting and some are keeping doors shut At a church in Sacramento , California , that has been closed for in-person services since March , congregants occasionally still stop by to pray outside and try @ @ @ @ @ @ @ dearly miss .
In Nashville , Tennessee , the pastor of an Anglican church has been handing out Communion in the parking lot for weeks .
South of Atlanta , the animated pastor of a 3,000-member congregation tries to summon every ounce of enthusiasm in his body to deliver a lively , music-filled service in front of a live audience of no one , hoping his message and spirit come through on various technology platforms .
None of those are ideal options , but they beat becoming the source of an outbreak of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and religious events have been linked to more than 650 U.S. cases of the coronavirus since the pandemic began , according to tracking by the New York Times .
Along with the nationwide surge in infections that has followed the loosening of restrictions aimed at combating the virus , outbreaks connected to churches have sprouted at several spots .
Read the full story from USA Today here .
• Illinois saw its daily COVID-19 case count dip below 1,000 for the first time in four days on Sunday , marking the end of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ since a peak month of May .
Health officials announced another 965 people tested positive for the coronavirus , bringing the state ’ s total to 161,575 cases .
• Across the U.S. , infections are soaring in many Sunbelt states .
In Arizona , more than 2,000 people went to an ER with coronavirus symptoms on a single day , July 7 .
8:30 a.m .
Even with patrons spaced far apart , moviegoing feels safe and communal The world has been turned upside down .
A global crisis has resulted in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of dying .
When a child coughs in the kitchen , the adults in the room share terrified glances : Is it serious ?
A father driving with his family issues a command : “ Masks on !
” Even our national games have been affected .
In the middle of the summer , the New York Yankees are playing in front of about 54,000 fewer people than would normally be in attendance .
Sounds like snippets of our real-life world in 2020 — but in fact everything I ’ ve described is @ @ @ @ @ @ @ main theater of the iconic Music Box Theatre in Lake View , which is open for limited capacity , social distance screening .
Over the last 126 days , I ’ ve watched more than a hundred films and streaming releases for review — but all at home .
The last time I screened a film in a public environment was on March 10 : the forgettable Vin Diesel actioner “ Bloodshot ” at the Navy Pier IMAX .
I ’ m breaking the streak with a Saturday afternoon screening of “ Interstellar @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , sprawling , ambitious , sentimental and sometimes insanely ludicrous sci-fi epic about a NASA pilot named Cooper ( Matthew McConaughey ) who leads a team of researchers across the galaxy and through a wormhole in search of an inhabitable planet that could be the new home for humankind .
Read the full column from Sun-Times film critic Richard Roeper here .

Chicagoans planning on hanging out at the bar of their favorite hangout should do so soon. Effective Friday, bars can no longer serve indoors, thanks to new coronavirus restrictions from Mayor Lori Lightfoot.
The new restrictions came as Illinois saw 1,173 new COVID-19 infections on Monday, the fifth day in the past week that public health officials reported more than 1,000 new cases.
It’s not quite back-to-normal yet for Chicago. Here’s what else happened as the city and state continued to fight the coronavirus pandemic.
News
8:55 p.m. Lightfoot tightens regulations on bars, restaurants, gyms after COVID-19 spike among young people
Customers chat at The Green Lady in Chicago on June 17, 2020 after bars were allowed to reopen as part of Phase 3. Pat Nabong/Sun-Times
Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Monday tightened regulations on Chicago bars, restaurants, gyms and personal services to prevent a spike of coronavirus among young people from turning into a dangerous surge.
Effective at 12:01 a.m. Friday:
Bars, taverns breweries and other establishments without a retail food license that serve alcohol for on-site consumption will be prohibited from serving their customers indoors.
Restaurants will be permitted to continue to serve alcohol, so long as they strictly enforce the city’s regulations.
The maximum party size and table occupancy at restaurants, bars, taverns and breweries will be reduced from 10 people to six.
Indoor fitness classes will be limited to a maximum of 10 people.
Facials, shaves and other personal services requiring the removal of face coverings will no longer be permitted.
Residential property managers will be asked to limit guest entry to five-per-unit to avoid indoor gatherings and parties.
Last week, Lightfoot warned of a rollback unless young people who account for 30 percent of new COVID cases in the city get the message.
Read the full report from City Hall reporter Fran Spielman here.
7:13 p.m. Republicans mandate at-home COVID-19 pre-convention test for attendees as cases spike in Florida
With COVID-19 cases spiking in Florida, Republican convention goers will have to take an “in-home” COVID-19 test before they depart for Jacksonville, paid for by the Republican National Committee, the Chicago Sun-Times has learned.
Conventiongoers will have to agree to be tested twice — at home and when they get to Florida.
This comes as President Donald Trump — who moved the main convention venue to Florida from North Carolina to escape coronavirus pandemic restrictions — is confronted with the reality that Florida COVID-19 cases are surging at some 10,000-a-day.
The RNC convention memo, obtained by the Sun-Times, also notes officials are cutting back on the number of people who can attend Jacksonville events, limiting the attendance of alternate delegates and guests.
6:01 p.m. CPS could lose $10M to private schools, district says in lawsuit against Betsy DeVos over coronavirus funding
Chicago Public Schools has joined a federal lawsuit with 12 other states, cities and districts against U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos over her insistence that public school districts share more of their federal coronavirus relief funding with private schools.
The complaint centers around more than $13 billion earmarked for schools in the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act, known as the CARES Act, which Congress passed in late March.
The legislation calls for states and school districts to receive money based on how much Title I funding they’re allotted to serve low-income students, the lawsuit says. But DeVos, the complaint argues, has instructed funding to be distributed based on a school’s total number of students, which would divert money from public schools serving children from low-income families to wealthier private schools.
CPS’ CARES Act allotment is $205 million of the $569.5 million earmarked for Illinois. Officials estimate CPS would lose about $10 million if DeVos’ distribution guidelines stand.
Read the full story here.
5:24 p.m. Illinois sees another day of more than 1,000 new COVID-19 cases
Illinois saw 1,173 new COVID-19 infections on Monday, the fifth day in the past week that public health officials reported more than 1,000 new cases. Despite the uptick in infections, the state’s death toll from COVID-19 remained relatively low, with only six new deaths reported, the second consecutive day with that number.
The seven-day positivity rate also crept up a hair to 3%, from 2.9% over the weekend The uptick in cases comes as Gov. J.B. Pritzker has voiced concerns that the state is moving backward, worries he repeated on Monday.
So far in July, health officials have reported eight days with more than 1,000 new cases, compared to only two such days in all of June. The latest batch of new cases brings the daily average so far this month to 978.
The fatality rate has been a different story. So far, the state is averaging about 19 a day in July, down sharply from the 100 a day in May. The state’s death toll now stands at 7,301, bringing the average to about 58 deaths a day since mid-March.
— Mitch Dudek
4:05 p.m. Floating boat cinema coming to Chicago
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, drive-in movies have been making a comeback — and now a company says a floating cinema allowing people to watch from mini-boats will be making appearances in a number of places around the country, including Chicago.
Beyond Cinema, an Australian production company, said the Chicago run for Floating Boat Cinema is scheduled for Sept. 9-13. The exact location has not yet been announced, nor has the list of movies to be screened.
The cinema will be made up of 12 to 24 mini-boats, each holding up to eight people.
Read the full story here.
2:26 p.m. Big U.S. companies got COVID-19 loans before others, analysis shows
NEW YORK — Ever since the U.S. government launched its emergency lending program for small businesses on April 3, there have been complaints that bigger companies had their loans approved and disbursed more quickly.
There is now evidence to back up those complaints.
An Associated Press analysis of Small Business Administration’s $659 billion Paycheck Protection Program shows that nearly a third of the loans approved in the program’s first week ranged from $150,000 to $10 million, the maximum allowed. In a second round of funding that began April 27, such loans made up just 7.4% of the total.
The average loan size fell from $257,240 on April 10 to nearly $105,000 as of July 17, according to the SBA.
The PPP made very low-interest loans available to any business — or any franchisee of a business — with under 500 employees. The loans would be forgiven if most of the money was used to keep employees on payroll.
Read the full story here.
11:43 a.m. UK COVID-19 vaccine prompts protective immune response in early trial
LONDON — Scientists at Oxford University say their experimental coronavirus vaccine has been shown in an early trial to prompt a protective immune response in hundreds of people who got the shot.
British researchers first began testing the vaccine in April in about 1,000 people, half of whom got the experimental vaccine. Such early trials are designed to evaluate safety and see what kind of immune response was provoked, but can’t tell if the vaccine truly protects.
In research published Monday in the journal Lancet, scientists said that they found their experimental COVID-19 vaccine produced a dual immune response in people aged 18 to 55 that lasted at least two months after they were immunized.
“We are seeing good immune response in almost everybody,” said Dr. Adrian Hill, director of the Jenner Institute at Oxford University. “What this vaccine does particularly well is trigger both arms of the immune system,” he said.
Read the full report here.
10:35 a.m. What we don’t know about how COVID-19 affects kids
What role children play in the coronavirus pandemic is the hot-button question of the summer as kids relish their free time while schools labor over how to resume classes.
The Trump administration says the science “is very clear,” but many doctors who specialize in pediatrics and infectious diseases say much of the evidence is inconclusive.
“There are still a lot of unanswered questions. That is the biggest challenge,” said Dr. Sonja Rasmussen, a pediatrics professor at the University of Florida and former scientist at the U.S. Centers of Disease Control and Prevention.
Several studies suggest, but don’t prove, that children are less likely to become infected than adults and more likely to have only mild symptoms.
An early report from Wuhan, China, where the outbreak began last winter, found that fewer than 2% of cases were in children. Later reports suggest between 5% and 8% of U.S. cases are in kids.
Through July 9, about 200,000 kids had tested positive in the U.S., according to a count based on state reports by the American Academy of Pediatrics. The number of kids who have been infected is almost certainly far higher than that though, experts say, because those with mild or no symptoms are less likely to get tested.
The CDC says that 228 children and teens through age 17 have died from the disease in the U.S. as of Thursday. More than 138,000 Americans have died in total, and there have been more than 3.6 million confirmed cases.
Read the full report here.
8:43 a.m. ‘A dangerous environment’: As churches reopen, coronavirus outbreaks are sprouting and some are keeping doors shut
At a church in Sacramento, California, that has been closed for in-person services since March, congregants occasionally still stop by to pray outside and try to capture a sense of fellowship they dearly miss.
In Nashville, Tennessee, the pastor of an Anglican church has been handing out Communion in the parking lot for weeks.
South of Atlanta, the animated pastor of a 3,000-member congregation tries to summon every ounce of enthusiasm in his body to deliver a lively, music-filled service in front of a live audience of no one, hoping his message and spirit come through on various technology platforms.
None of those are ideal options, but they beat becoming the source of an outbreak of COVID-19.
Almost 40 places of worship and religious events have been linked to more than 650 U.S. cases of the coronavirus since the pandemic began, according to tracking by the New York Times. Along with the nationwide surge in infections that has followed the loosening of restrictions aimed at combating the virus, outbreaks connected to churches have sprouted at several spots.
Read the full story from USA Today here.
New cases
Illinois saw its daily COVID-19 case count dip below 1,000 for the first time in four days on Sunday, marking the end of the longest stretch of four-digit daily caseloads since a peak month of May. Health officials announced another 965 people tested positive for the coronavirus, bringing the state’s total to 161,575 cases.
Across the U.S., infections are soaring in many Sunbelt states. In Arizona, more than 2,000 people went to an ER with coronavirus symptoms on a single day, July 7.
Analysis & Commentary
8:30 a.m. Even with patrons spaced far apart, moviegoing feels safe and communal
The world has been turned upside down.
A global crisis has resulted in millions taking ill and hundreds of thousands of dying. When a child coughs in the kitchen, the adults in the room share terrified glances: Is it serious? A father driving with his family issues a command: “Masks on!” Even our national games have been affected. In the middle of the summer, the New York Yankees are playing in front of about 54,000 fewer people than would normally be in attendance.
Sounds like snippets of our real-life world in 2020 — but in fact everything I’ve described is playing out in breathtaking 70mm in the main theater of the iconic Music Box Theatre in Lake View, which is open for limited capacity, social distance screening.
Over the last 126 days, I’ve watched more than a hundred films and streaming releases for review — but all at home. The last time I screened a film in a public environment was on March 10: the forgettable Vin Diesel actioner “Bloodshot” at the Navy Pier IMAX. I’m breaking the streak with a Saturday afternoon screening of “Interstellar,” Christopher Nolan’s beautiful, sprawling, ambitious, sentimental and sometimes insanely ludicrous sci-fi epic about a NASA pilot named Cooper (Matthew McConaughey) who leads a team of researchers across the galaxy and through a wormhole in search of an inhabitable planet that could be the new home for humankind.
Read the full column from Sun-Times film critic Richard Roeper here.


chicagosun-times--2020-07-20--Foreign students question future in U.S. after pandemic, visa uncertainties

Growing up in Vietnam , Seth learned English with hopes of someday studying — and eventually settling — in the United States .
“ My whole life has been in the trajectory that I would ... ultimately find my life here , ” said Seth , who now attends school at the University of Chicago .
But recent events in the U.S. have made Seth and other international students in Chicago question whether those types of dreams can be realized .
First , the COVID-19 pandemic hit , forcing some foreign students to race home to be with their families @ @ @ @ @ @ @ who faced travel restrictions .
Still other students , especially from China , faced xenophobia .
Then earlier this month , after students made plans to return to college in the fall , the federal government announced it was halting COVID-19 exemptions that had allowed international students to take more online classes than normal and keep their visas during the spring and summer .
Seth , who asked that their last name not be included , became at risk of suddenly being sent back to Vietnam .
“ My folks don ’ t @ @ @ @ @ @ @ trans … [ or ] that I ’ m transitioning medically , ” Seth said .
Although the Trump administration has since backed down from the plan to drop the exemption , Seth said it was another indication that not everyone here values international students .
“ This is just revealing to me more clearly that the U.S. doesn ’ t care about me , ” Seth said .
“ I ’ ve had the inkling , I suppose , that life in the U.S. is not as feasible as I thought it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ just bringing that home.
” Laurisa Sastoque , a student from Colombia who will be a sophomore at Northwestern , said while her university has “ made me feel like I matter , ” recent events gave her “ a lot of doubts ” — and led her to consider whether she would have been better off staying in her native country and studying medicine .
Sastoque originally came to the U.S. to study creative writing , and Northwestern became her dream school after she read NU writing student Veronica Roth ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to rush back to Colombia when the pandemic forced Northwestern to move classes online in the spring .
She was quarantining there when ICE announced its decision to end its COVID-19 exemptions regarding international student visas , threatening her return for fall semester .
If she lost her visa , reapplying would be tough since the U.S. embassy in Colombia was closed .
After the ICE restrictions were lifted , her biggest worry is COVID-19 — catching it through traveling internationally or while back in the U.S. , where cases have surged .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ system without relatives in close proximity could take a physical and mental toll , she said .
“ Being alone while sick , and probably with medical bills , that ’ s not a great situation to be in , ” she said .
In the end Satostoque decided to stay in Colombia and take her courses remotely this term .
For Jonic Zhehao Zhu , a rising Northwestern junior from China , ICE ’ s sudden announcement earlier this month of the visa restrictions was maddening , especially because many students had @ @ @ @ @ @ @ such as housing .
Zhu chose to stay in his dorm and then an apartment in Chicago when the pandemic worsened in the U.S. , due to the lack of flights home and their cost and the mandatory two-week quarantine he would have faced going back to Shanghai .
When the visa decision occurred , Zhu spent his time reading through ICE web pages and talking to his peers , trying to understand the rules .
He decided not to discuss the situation with his family , who are unfamiliar with the political @ @ @ @ @ @ @ [ it ] with my family would just freak them out , ” said Zhu .
What ’ s more , Zhu says it ’ s been upsetting to see concerns raised about foreign students as the outbreak spread from China across the globe earlier this year .
China did not do “ a good job disclosing its cases at the start of the year , yet Trump ’ s failure of managing the issue in the U.S. is even more obnoxious , ” he said .
“ Scapegoating and continued acts of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ infuriating.
” But he hopes to continue his education in the U.S. , saying that he came here “ for the robustness of the higher education system , not for the political atmosphere.
” Rising Northwestern sophomore Tanisha Tekriwal , who is from India , said the uncertainty caused by the ICE announcement stopped international students from “ making big , personal decisions ” like avoiding in-person classes out of concern for their health .
She noted that debates around the value of foreign students felt “ dehumanizing , ” with many schools @ @ @ @ @ @ @ on how much money they bring in tuition revenues to U.S. colleges .
To Tekriwal , being an international student often feels like being “ a last minute addition.
” “ A lot of things just aren ’ t designed for us , ” she said .

Growing up in Vietnam, Seth learned English with hopes of someday studying — and eventually settling — in the United States.
“My whole life has been in the trajectory that I would ... ultimately find my life here,” said Seth, who now attends school at the University of Chicago.
But recent events in the U.S. have made Seth and other international students in Chicago question whether those types of dreams can be realized. First, the COVID-19 pandemic hit, forcing some foreign students to race home to be with their families when campuses closed, and stranding others who faced travel restrictions. Still other students, especially from China, faced xenophobia.
Then earlier this month, after students made plans to return to college in the fall, the federal government announced it was halting COVID-19 exemptions that had allowed international students to take more online classes than normal and keep their visas during the spring and summer.
Seth, who asked that their last name not be included, became at risk of suddenly being sent back to Vietnam.
“My folks don’t know at all that I’m trans … [or] that I’m transitioning medically,” Seth said.
Although the Trump administration has since backed down from the plan to drop the exemption, Seth said it was another indication that not everyone here values international students.
“This is just revealing to me more clearly that the U.S. doesn’t care about me,” Seth said. “I’ve had the inkling, I suppose, that life in the U.S. is not as feasible as I thought it to be, but this is really just bringing that home.”
Laurisa Sastoque, 18, who is a rising sophomore at Northwestern from Colombia. Provided by Laurisa Sastoque
Colombian student chooses to stay home this term
Laurisa Sastoque, a student from Colombia who will be a sophomore at Northwestern, said while her university has “made me feel like I matter,” recent events gave her “a lot of doubts” — and led her to consider whether she would have been better off staying in her native country and studying medicine.
Sastoque originally came to the U.S. to study creative writing, and Northwestern became her dream school after she read NU writing student Veronica Roth’s “Divergent” series.
Sastoque had to rush back to Colombia when the pandemic forced Northwestern to move classes online in the spring. She was quarantining there when ICE announced its decision to end its COVID-19 exemptions regarding international student visas, threatening her return for fall semester. If she lost her visa, reapplying would be tough since the U.S. embassy in Colombia was closed.
After the ICE restrictions were lifted, her biggest worry is COVID-19 — catching it through traveling internationally or while back in the U.S., where cases have surged. Having to navigate the unfamiliar U.S. healthcare system without relatives in close proximity could take a physical and mental toll, she said.
“Being alone while sick, and probably with medical bills, that’s not a great situation to be in,” she said.
In the end Sastoque decided to stay in Colombia and take her courses remotely this term.
Scapegoating and xenophobia ‘infuriating’
For Jonic Zhehao Zhu, a rising Northwestern junior from China, ICE’s sudden announcement earlier this month of the visa restrictions was maddening, especially because many students had already made plans for the school year such as housing.
Zhu chose to stay in his dorm and then an apartment in Chicago when the pandemic worsened in the U.S., due to the lack of flights home and their cost and the mandatory two-week quarantine he would have faced going back to Shanghai.
When the visa decision occurred, Zhu spent his time reading through ICE web pages and talking to his peers, trying to understand the rules. He decided not to discuss the situation with his family, who are unfamiliar with the political and immigration system here.
“Discussing [it] with my family would just freak them out,” said Zhu.
What’s more, Zhu says it’s been upsetting to see concerns raised about foreign students as the outbreak spread from China across the globe earlier this year.
China did not do “a good job disclosing its cases at the start of the year, yet Trump’s failure of managing the issue in the U.S. is even more obnoxious,” he said. “Scapegoating and continued acts of xenophobia such as the ICE guidance are infuriating.”
But he hopes to continue his education in the U.S., saying that he came here “for the robustness of the higher education system, not for the political atmosphere.”
Rising Northwestern sophomore Tanisha Tekriwal, who is from India, said the uncertainty caused by the ICE announcement stopped international students from “making big, personal decisions” like avoiding in-person classes out of concern for their health.
She noted that debates around the value of foreign students felt “dehumanizing,” with many schools discussing international students in financial terms based on how much money they bring in tuition revenues to U.S. colleges.
To Tekriwal, being an international student often feels like being “a last minute addition.”
“A lot of things just aren’t designed for us,” she said.


chicagosun-times--2020-07-20--Cubs pitchers adjusting to new MLB protocols

Pitchers have used saliva to get a better grip on the baseball since the inception of the game .
But with MLB ’ s health and safety protocols in place to combat the spread of COVID-19 , they ’ ll have to adjust in 2020 .
As part of MLB ’ s new protocols , pitchers won ’ t be allowed to use saliva to help them with their grip this season .
They will , however , be allowed to have a small wet rag on the mound to help them with that .
‘ ‘ It hasn ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ just been different , ’ ’ said Cubs right-hander Kyle Hendricks , who will start the season opener Friday against the Brewers .
‘ ‘ We ’ ve been trying different things out .
Every time you go through a bullpen or go to play catch , I take a little wet rag out there with me .
We each have our own rosin bags .
So it ’ s just learning that balance of what you need with a little rosin and a little water to get that kind of tack .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ that tack from your saliva , so it ’ s just a different way of going about it .
But I think we ’ ve had a couple of weeks now to work through it .
I know I feel great with where everything ’ s at and what we can do while we ’ re out there.
’ ’ As unsanitary as it might sound , pitchers licking their fingers is second nature to them .
While it might seem like a quick fix to use a wet rag instead , that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in the season .
‘ ‘ [ Reliever ] Craig Kimbrel is a guy who has gone to his mouth his entire career to get grip , and it ’ s been interesting to watch him get comfortable not doing it , ’ ’ pitching coach Tommy Hottovy said .
‘ ‘ I don ’ t think it will be a huge factor right now with the weather being hot and humid .
Guys should be able to get a good grip on the baseball .
As we get into September and the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and the air is dry , that ’ s when the ball will get slick.
’ ’ First baseman Anthony Rizzo seems to be on the mend .
Rizzo ’ s back responded well after an intense workout and testing Sunday , when he went through batting practice and infield drills .
‘ ‘ [ He ’ s ] doing really well , ’ ’ manager David Ross said .
‘ ‘ [ Monday ] was really just a down day for him .
Get some cage routine in and get outta here @ @ @ @ @ @ @ direction [ with ] good , positive feedback.
’ ’ Ross said the plan is for Rizzo to face live pitching Tuesday and go from there .
If things continue to progress , there is a possibility Rizzo will be in the lineup for the Cubs ’ final exhibition game Wednesday against the Twins .

Pitchers have used saliva to get a better grip on the baseball since the inception of the game. But with MLB’s health and safety protocols in place to combat the spread of COVID-19, they’ll have to adjust in 2020.
As part of MLB’s new protocols, pitchers won’t be allowed to use saliva to help them with their grip this season. They will, however, be allowed to have a small wet rag on the mound to help them with that.
‘‘It hasn’t been weird, it’s just been different,’’ said Cubs right-hander Kyle Hendricks, who will start the season opener Friday against the Brewers. ‘‘We’ve been trying different things out. Every time you go through a bullpen or go to play catch, I take a little wet rag out there with me. We each have our own rosin bags. So it’s just learning that balance of what you need with a little rosin and a little water to get that kind of tack.
‘‘You’re not getting that tack from your saliva, so it’s just a different way of going about it. But I think we’ve had a couple of weeks now to work through it. I know I feel great with where everything’s at and what we can do while we’re out there.’’
As unsanitary as it might sound, pitchers licking their fingers is second nature to them. While it might seem like a quick fix to use a wet rag instead, that adjustment could become a bigger factor later in the season.
‘‘[Reliever] Craig Kimbrel is a guy who has gone to his mouth his entire career to get grip, and it’s been interesting to watch him get comfortable not doing it,’’ pitching coach Tommy Hottovy said. ‘‘I don’t think it will be a huge factor right now with the weather being hot and humid. Guys should be able to get a good grip on the baseball. As we get into September and the playoffs, where it’s cooler and the air is dry, that’s when the ball will get slick.’’
Rizzo’s back responding well
First baseman Anthony Rizzo seems to be on the mend. Rizzo’s back responded well after an intense workout and testing Sunday, when he went through batting practice and infield drills.
‘‘[He’s] doing really well,’’ manager David Ross said. ‘‘[Monday] was really just a down day for him. Get some cage routine in and get outta here. Continuing to move in the right direction [with] good, positive feedback.’’
Ross said the plan is for Rizzo to face live pitching Tuesday and go from there. If things continue to progress, there is a possibility Rizzo will be in the lineup for the Cubs’ final exhibition game Wednesday against the Twins.


chicagosun-times--2020-07-20--Can White Sox’ Tim Anderson — or someone else — make a run at a .400 batting average?

When we last saw regular-season baseball , White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson was finishing up a breakout season in which he led the majors with a .335 batting average .
Anderson ’ s chance to defend that title begins Friday in a 60-game season in which early streaks take on exaggerated importance .
The qualifying standard for a batting-average title is 3.1 plate appearances per team game .
In a 162-game season , that ’ s 502 plate appearances ; in a 60-game season , it ’ s a mere 186 .
Imagine a hitter with 170 at-bats and 16 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ required 186 plate appearances .
This hypothetical hitter bats .300 with 45 hits in 150 of those at-bats but has a hot week in which he goes 12-for-20 .
That one week propels the hitter from .300 to .335 .
In a long season , if the hitter had 510 at-bats and hit .300 with 147 hits in 490 of them , a 12-for-20 streak only would raise his average to .312 .
The flip side is that a cold streak can sink a season batting average .
Assume an 0-for-20 streak instead @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .300 hitter sinks to .265 in the season with 170 at-bats but only to .288 in a season with 510 .
In the extreme , the short-term effect could give us the first .400 hitter since Ted Williams ’ .406 in 1941 .
The last hitter above .400 after his team ’ s 60th game was the Braves ’ Chipper Jones at .409 in 2008 , on his way to a .364 season .
But we can see some challenges in equivalent time frames in the last 10 years .
In the decade @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Josh Hamilton ’ s .359 in 2010 .
But the situation is different in a breakdown of averages from the start of a season through June 7 and from July 23 through the end of a season .
Two players hit .390 or better in that sample , both in the span from July 23 to the end of the season .
The Tigers ’ Miguel Cabrera posted a .390 average in 2011 , and the Reds ’ Joey Votto hit .397 in 2016 .
Votto was 95-for-239 during his hot stretch .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ a hit , his average for the dates baseball is being played this season would have been .402 .
Cabrera was 90-for-230 .
Two hits instead of outs would have made that .400 .
Last season , the leaders were the Dodgers ’ Cody Bellinger at .365 in the early span and the Twins ’ Nelson Cruz at .370 in the late span .
Three Sox have been leaders : Paul Konerko at .371 early in 2011 , Jose Abreu at .355 late in 2014 and Avisail Garcia at .361 late in 2017 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , hitting .357 from July 23 onward .
That was propelled by a .430 batting average on balls in play .
There ’ s a certain amount of chance in BABiP , and high batting averages fueled by BABiP usually decline the next season .
To defend his title — or , with some BABiP magic , challenge Williams — Anderson is likely to need a super-hot streak without falling into the frigid zone .
The short season just leaves no time for the probabilities to balance out .

When we last saw regular-season baseball, White Sox shortstop Tim Anderson was finishing up a breakout season in which he led the majors with a .335 batting average.
Anderson’s chance to defend that title begins Friday in a 60-game season in which early streaks take on exaggerated importance.
The qualifying standard for a batting-average title is 3.1 plate appearances per team game. In a 162-game season, that’s 502 plate appearances; in a 60-game season, it’s a mere 186.
Imagine a hitter with 170 at-bats and 16 walks. That adds up to the required 186 plate appearances. This hypothetical hitter bats .300 with 45 hits in 150 of those at-bats but has a hot week in which he goes 12-for-20. That one week propels the hitter from .300 to .335.
In a long season, if the hitter had 510 at-bats and hit .300 with 147 hits in 490 of them, a 12-for-20 streak only would raise his average to .312.
The flip side is that a cold streak can sink a season batting average. Assume an 0-for-20 streak instead of a 12-for-20 one, and the .300 hitter sinks to .265 in the season with 170 at-bats but only to .288 in a season with 510.
In the extreme, the short-term effect could give us the first .400 hitter since Ted Williams’ .406 in 1941.
The last hitter above .400 after his team’s 60th game was the Braves’ Chipper Jones at .409 in 2008, on his way to a .364 season. But we can see some challenges in equivalent time frames in the last 10 years.
In the decade 2010-19, no qualifier hit higher than Josh Hamilton’s .359 in 2010. But the situation is different in a breakdown of averages from the start of a season through June 7 and from July 23 through the end of a season.
Two players hit .390 or better in that sample, both in the span from July 23 to the end of the season. The Tigers’ Miguel Cabrera posted a .390 average in 2011, and the Reds’ Joey Votto hit .397 in 2016.
Votto was 95-for-239 during his hot stretch. If just one out had dropped for a hit, his average for the dates baseball is being played this season would have been .402. Cabrera was 90-for-230. Two hits instead of outs would have made that .400.
Last season, the leaders were the Dodgers’ Cody Bellinger at .365 in the early span and the Twins’ Nelson Cruz at .370 in the late span. Three Sox have been leaders: Paul Konerko at .371 early in 2011, Jose Abreu at .355 late in 2014 and Avisail Garcia at .361 late in 2017.
Anderson was strongest at the end, hitting .357 from July 23 onward. That was propelled by a .430 batting average on balls in play. There’s a certain amount of chance in BABiP, and high batting averages fueled by BABiP usually decline the next season.
To defend his title — or, with some BABiP magic, challenge Williams — Anderson is likely to need a super-hot streak without falling into the frigid zone. The short season just leaves no time for the probabilities to balance out.


chicagosun-times--2020-07-20--Republicans mandate at-home COVID-19 pre-convention test for attendees as cases spike in Florida

With COVID-19 cases spiking in Florida , Republican convention goers will have to take an “ in-home ” COVID-19 test before they depart for Jacksonville , paid for by the Republican National Committee , the Chicago Sun-Times has learned .
Conventiongoers will have to agree to be tested twice — at home and when they get to Florida .
This comes as President Donald Trump — who moved the main convention venue to Florida from North Carolina to escape coronavirus pandemic restrictions — is confronted with the reality that Florida COVID-19 cases are surging at some 10,000-a-day .
The RNC @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , also notes officials are cutting back on the number of people who can attend Jacksonville events , limiting the attendance of alternate delegates and guests .
What the RNC is calling “ The Convention Celebration ” in Jacksonville starts the evening of Aug. 24 .
Trump is expected to accept his 2020 nomination on Thursday , Aug. 27 .
A reason Trump yanked the convention from Charlotte was that he wanted a full-blown convention .
However , with Florida officials struggling with spiking COVID-19 cases , RNC officials are admitting Trump won @ @ @ @ @ @ @ envisioned .
There will be some official party business taking place in Charlotte with a small number of party officials , with guests not encouraged to attend .
The memo also stated the health and safety protocols in Jacksonville will “ include , but are not limited to , on-site temperature checks , available PPE , and aggressive sanitizing protocols , and available COVID-19 testing.
” “ ….every potential convention participant ( attending either Charlotte or Jacksonville ) will be sent an in-home COVID-19 test paid for by the RNC .
This includes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Potential convention participants will need to take the in-home test and send back to the testing vendor .
“ …Attendees are asked to conduct a self-administered test prior to departing for convention and will be asked to test again prior to the event with the President.
” People will have to agree to allow the testing company to turn their tests results over to the RNC .
The wearing of masks has exploded as a political issue , and Trump has been resisting wearing a mask — until Monday .
On Monday , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ states —including those he won in 2016 — the president posted on Twitter a picture of himself wearing a mask .
He said in his post , “ We are United in our effort to defeat the Invisible China Virus , and many people say that it is Patriotic to wear a face mask when you can ’ t socially distance .
There is nobody more Patriotic than me , your favorite President.
” Still , Trump ’ s convention will not mandate masks .
The memo said , when it comes to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ local and state health guidelines in place at the time of the convention .
”

With COVID-19 cases spiking in Florida, Republican convention goers will have to take an “in-home” COVID-19 test before they depart for Jacksonville, paid for by the Republican National Committee, the Chicago Sun-Times has learned.
Convention attendees will have to agree to be tested twice — at home and when they get to Florida.
This comes as President Donald Trump — who moved the main convention venue to Florida from North Carolina to escape coronavirus pandemic restrictions — is confronted with the reality that Florida COVID-19 cases are surging at some 10,000-a-day.
The RNC convention memo, obtained by the Sun-Times, also notes officials are cutting back on the number of people who can attend Jacksonville events, limiting the attendance of alternate delegates and guests.
What the RNC is calling “The Convention Celebration” in Jacksonville starts the evening of Aug. 24. Trump is expected to accept his 2020 nomination on Thursday, Aug. 27.
Trump yanked the convention from Charlotte because he wanted a full-blown convention. However, with Florida officials struggling with spiking COVID-19 cases, RNC officials are admitting Trump won’t get the convention he originally envisioned.
There will be some official party business taking place in Charlotte with a small number of party officials, with guests not encouraged to attend.
The memo also stated the health and safety protocols in Jacksonville will “include, but are not limited to, on-site temperature checks, available PPE, and aggressive sanitizing protocols, and available COVID-19 testing.”
“….every potential convention participant (attending either Charlotte or Jacksonville) will be sent an in-home COVID-19 test paid for by the RNC. This includes guests of delegates and alternate delegates. Potential convention participants will need to take the in-home test and send back to the testing vendor.
“…Attendees are asked to conduct a self-administered test prior to departing for convention and will be asked to test again prior to the event with the President.”
People will have to agree to allow the testing company to turn their tests results over to the RNC.
The wearing of masks has exploded as a political issue, and Trump has been resisting wearing a mask — until Monday. On Monday, with cases soaring in a variety of states —including those he won in 2016 — the president posted on Twitter a picture of himself wearing a mask. He said in his post, “We are United in our effort to defeat the Invisible China Virus, and many people say that it is Patriotic to wear a face mask when you can’t socially distance. There is nobody more Patriotic than me, your favorite President.”
Still, Trump’s convention will not mandate masks. The memo said, when it comes to masks, “We will follow the local and state health guidelines in place at the time of the convention.”


chicagosun-times--2020-07-20--Armed kids as young as 10 carjack more than a dozen people, police say, including CPS teacher left ‘

Armed kids as young as 10 carjack more than a dozen people, police say, including CPS teacher left ‘traumatized’ in Calumet Heights

Alyssa Blanchard was so traumatized after being carjacked at gunpoint last week outside her Calumet Heights home that she 's now scared to go outside .
Chicago police say a group of children , ages 10 to 17 , carjacked Blanchard and at least 15 other people since late June — wreaking havoc on Blanchard ’ s generally peaceful South Side neighborhood .
Police said shots were fired by the suspects in two of the carjackings , but no one was hit .
“ I ’ m scared to use my garage .
I don ’ t feel safe in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an elementary school teacher at Chicago Public Schools .
What ’ s especially painful for Blanchard was seeing her stolen BMW used the next day to carjack a woman in the parking lot of Trinity Hospital , a few blocks from her home , she said .
“ I don ’ t want to have to tell my kid about how some young woman was killed or shot with kids using my vehicle .
It was traumatizing , ” Blanchard , 44 , said .
Blanchard was carjacked July 14 while returning home @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pulled into her alley garage on South Kingston Avenue , she noticed a vehicle and three or four children come toward her .
Two children armed with handguns pointed them to her head and ordered her out of her BMW , she said .
One child looked as young as 11 , she said .
“ It was so instantaneous ...
I was just scared for my life .
I thought , ‘ this is it , ’ ” she said .
They took her purse , which had about $ 300 inside @ @ @ @ @ @ @ rode off , she said .
Blanchard said the children used her BMW the next day to carjack a woman in the parking lot of Trinity Hospital .
In that carjacking , a 21-year-old was seated in her Lexus when four or five teens exited a BMW , with two of them confronting her with guns , police said .
Two teens forced her to the ground outside the car , but she grabbed onto a door handle and held on until the teens drove off , police said .
The woman was @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said police recovered her BMW , which had been crashed a couple days after the carjacking .
Blanchard said she was dismayed to see such young children involved in this type of crime .
“ I teach this age group and I can ’ t believe they would do this , ” she said .
Police published a community alert Sunday evening warning of 14 other carjackings tied to the children .
According to the alert , the children are committing the carjackings at a greater frequency , with six carjackings reported just @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the 7200 block of South Champlain Avenue ; • July 9 in the 8000 block of South Indiana Avenue ; • July 15 in the 8700 block of South Stony Island Avenue ; • July 15 in the 7500 block of South Wabash Avenue ; • July 16 in the 9100 block of South Essex Avenue ; • July 16 in the 7300 block of South Chappel Avenue ; • July 17 in the 8800 block of South Luella Avenue ; • July 17 in the 8900 block of South Euclid Avenue ; @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of South Jeffrey Avenue ; • July 18 in the 9100 block of South Euclid Avenue ; • July 18 in the 8600 block of South Constance Avenue ; • July 18 in the 9300 block of South Paxton Avenue ; • July 18 in the 9300 block of South Essex Avenue ; • July 18 in the 1600 Block of East 92nd Place ; and • July 18 in the 8100 Block of South Indiana Avenue .
No arrest has been made , police said .
Anyone with information is asked to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ force at 312-745-4489 .

Alyssa Blanchard was so traumatized after being carjacked at gunpoint last week outside her Calumet Heights home that she's now scared to go outside.
Chicago police say a group of children, ages 10 to 17, carjacked Blanchard and at least 15 other people since late June — wreaking havoc on Blanchard’s generally peaceful South Side neighborhood.
Police said shots were fired by the suspects in two of the carjackings, but no one was hit.
“I’m scared to use my garage. I don’t feel safe in my neighborhood,” said Blanchard, an elementary school teacher at Chicago Public Schools.
What’s especially painful for Blanchard was seeing her stolen BMW used the next day to carjack a woman in the parking lot of Trinity Hospital, a few blocks from her home, she said.
“I don’t want to have to tell my kid about how some young woman was killed or shot with kids using my vehicle. It was traumatizing,” Blanchard, 44, said.
Blanchard was carjacked July 14 while returning home in the early evening. As she pulled into her alley garage on South Kingston Avenue, she noticed a vehicle and three or four children come toward her.
Two children armed with handguns pointed them to her head and ordered her out of her BMW, she said. One child looked as young as 11, she said.
“It was so instantaneous ... I was just scared for my life. I thought, ‘this is it,’” she said.
They took her purse, which had about $300 inside, and jumped inside her BMW and rode off, she said.
Blanchard said the children used her BMW the next day to carjack a woman in the parking lot of Trinity Hospital. In that carjacking, a 21-year-old was seated in her Lexus when four or five teens exited a BMW, with two of them confronting her with guns, police said.
Two teens forced her to the ground outside the car, but she grabbed onto a door handle and held on until the teens drove off, police said. The woman was treated for a foot injury.
Blanchard said police recovered her BMW, which had been crashed a couple days after the carjacking.
Blanchard said she was dismayed to see such young children involved in this type of crime.
“I teach this age group and I can’t believe they would do this,” she said.
Police published a community alert Sunday evening warning of 14 other carjackings tied to the children. According to the alert, the children are committing the carjackings at a greater frequency, with six carjackings reported just last Saturday:
June 23 in the 7200 block of South Champlain Avenue;
July 9 in the 8000 block of South Indiana Avenue;
July 15 in the 8700 block of South Stony Island Avenue;
July 15 in the 7500 block of South Wabash Avenue;
July 16 in the 9100 block of South Essex Avenue;
July 16 in the 7300 block of South Chappel Avenue;
July 17 in the 8800 block of South Luella Avenue;
July 17 in the 8900 block of South Euclid Avenue;
July 17 in the 9100 block of South Jeffery Avenue;
July 18 in the 9100 block of South Euclid Avenue;
July 18 in the 8600 block of South Constance Avenue;
July 18 in the 9300 block of South Paxton Avenue;
July 18 in the 9300 block of South Essex Avenue;
July 18 in the 1600 Block of East 92nd Place; and
July 18 in the 8100 Block of South Indiana Avenue.
Anyone with information is asked to call CPD’s vehicle highjacking task force at 312-745-4489.


chicagosun-times--2020-07-20--Feds bust open-air drug market in Humboldt Park, charging 18

The feds have charged 18 men who allegedly worked at an open-air drug market in Humboldt Park , where undercover agents allegedly made about 80 purchases during a year-long investigation dubbed “ Operation Monticello ’ s Revenge.
” Most of the men were arrested last week on charges of federal drug conspiracy in connection to the drug market in the 1000 block of North Monticello Avenue , the U.S. Attorney ’ s office in Chicago announced Monday .
According to a criminal complaint , Sam Howard and Kelvin Franklin worked as street-level managers of the market , coordinating the sale @ @ @ @ @ @ @ drugs to undercover officers more than a dozen times each .
Three other men — William Tate , Morrio Bonds and Antonio Lee — supplied the drugs at the market and repackaged them in aluminum foil or baggies , prosecutors said .
Thirteen other men are charged with serving as street-level traffickers who allegedly gave Howard and Franklin proceeds from the sales .
The complaint lists several alleged sales made to undercover officers between March 2019 and September 2019 .
In one sale April 2 , an undercover officer wearing audio and video @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , “ You got that D ?
” meaning heroin , according to the complaint .
While the officer walked south , another person called out , “ How many [ blows of heroin ] ?
” The officer said he wanted five .
“ I got fifty dollars , ” he said , according to the complaint .
Howard then joined the officer again and asked , “ You ain ’ t the police , you all ?
” The officer replied , “ We came here last week.
” Howard , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ “ What kind of blows we got ?
” “ Yeah , you know ... ” Howard allegedly said .
The officer then negotiated with the pair and left with three foil baggies of heroin , the complaint states .
Intercepted phone calls show the group made thousands of dollars daily from drug sales , prosecutors said .
Investigators estimate the group sold , between February 2019 and October that year , more than 12 kilograms of heroin , 16 kilograms of fentanyl-laced heroin , 7 kilograms of heroin with synthetic fentanyl , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ more than 2,400 drug-related arrests at the Monticello drug spot between January 2019 and May 2020 , according to prosecutors .
More than 200 other arrests at the spot were for weapons .
In all , more than 19,000 service calls were made by Chicago police there .
CPD ’ s Harrison District , which encompass the drug market , has seen steadily increasing violence in the past few years , according to official CPD statistics .
Murders in the district stand at 54 this year through July 12 , an increase of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ The day after police Supt .
David Brown was sworn in as the head of CPD , he ordered officers from police districts across the North Side and Northwest Side be sent to the Harrison District on the West Side — long one of the most violent areas of the city .
He later apologized to aldermen who were blindsided by the swift removal officers from their wards .
In March , the Sun-Times reported that Chicago police officers were checking IDs of everyone entering certain West Side blocks known for drug sales @ @ @ @ @ @ @ effort to disrupt their activities .
The American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois criticized CPD ’ s actions , saying the enforcement raised constitution concerns “ about limiting people ’ s movement and requiring people to ‘ show papers ’ to travel within Chicago .
”

The feds have charged 18 men who allegedly worked at an open-air drug market in Humboldt Park, where undercover agents allegedly made about 80 purchases during a year-long investigation dubbed “Operation Monticello’s Revenge.”
Most of the men were arrested last week on charges of federal drug conspiracy in connection to the drug market in the 1000 block of North Monticello Avenue, the U.S. Attorney’s office in Chicago announced Monday.
According to a criminal complaint, Sam Howard and Kelvin Franklin worked as street-level managers of the market, coordinating the sale of fentanyl-laced heroin, and personally sold drugs to undercover officers more than a dozen times each.
Three other men — William Tate, Morrio Bonds and Antonio Lee — supplied the drugs at the market and repackaged them in aluminum foil or baggies, prosecutors said.
Thirteen other men are charged with serving as street-level traffickers who allegedly gave Howard and Franklin proceeds from the sales. The complaint lists several alleged sales made to undercover officers between March 2019 and September 2019.
In one sale April 2, an undercover officer wearing audio and video recorders approached the market and asked Howard, “You got that D?” meaning heroin, according to the complaint.
“Next block,” Howard allegedly said, pointing south down Monticello.
While the officer walked south, another person called out, “How many [blows of heroin]?”
The officer said he wanted five. “I got fifty dollars,” he said, according to the complaint.
Howard then joined the officer again and asked, “You ain’t the police, you all?”
The officer replied, “We came here last week.”
Howard, testing his customer, then asked, “What kind of blows we got?”
“Tin foil,” the officer said.
“Yeah, you know ...” Howard allegedly said.
The officer then negotiated with the pair and left with three foil baggies of heroin, the complaint states.
Intercepted phone calls show the group made thousands of dollars daily from drug sales, prosecutors said.
Investigators estimate the group sold, between February 2019 and October that year, more than 12 kilograms of heroin, 16 kilograms of fentanyl-laced heroin, 7 kilograms of heroin with synthetic fentanyl, according to the complaint.
Police recorded more than 2,400 drug-related arrests at the Monticello drug spot between January 2019 and May 2020, according to prosecutors. More than 200 other arrests at the spot were for weapons. In all, more than 19,000 service calls were made by Chicago police there.
CPD’s Harrison District, which encompass the drug market, has seen steadily increasing violence in the past few years, according to official CPD statistics. Murders in the district stand at 54 this year through July 12, an increase of more than 30% since 2016.
The day after police Supt. David Brown was sworn in as the head of CPD, he ordered officers from police districts across the North Side and Northwest Side be sent to the Harrison District on the West Side — long one of the most violent areas of the city. He later apologized to aldermen who were blindsided by the swift removal officers from their wards.
In March, the Sun-Times reported that Chicago police officers were checking IDs of everyone entering certain West Side blocks known for drug sales, including Monticello Avenue, in an effort to disrupt their activities. The American Civil Liberties Union of Illinois criticized CPD’s actions, saying the enforcement raised constitution concerns “about limiting people’s movement and requiring people to ‘show papers’ to travel within Chicago.”