chicagotribune--2020-08-11--Live updates: Here’s the latest on the aftermath of overnight looting and vandalism in Chicago

Mayor Lori Lightfoot rejected calls for the National Guard to patrol Chicago in the wake of overnight looting downtown while defending herself on Monday from criticism that her administration failed to protect the city .
“ Again , no , we do not need federal troops in Chicago , period , full stop , ” Lightfoot said .
“ I ’ m sure the president will have his way with this incident but I ’ m calling upon him to do the things that we do need , ” such as making changes to the nation ’ s gun laws @ @ @ @ @ @ @ after hundreds of people swept through the Magnificent Mile and other parts of downtown Chicago early Monday , smashing windows , looting stores , confronting police and at one point exchanging gunfire with officers , authorities said .
The looting began shortly after midnight as people darted through broken store windows and doors along Michigan Avenue carrying shopping bags full of merchandise .
Cars dropped off more people as the crowd grew .
At least one U-Haul van was seen pulling up .
More than 100 people were arrested as of 9 a.m. @ @ @ @ @ @ @ David Brown .
Thirteen officers were injured during the unrest , including a sergeant who was hit by a bottle .
A civilian and private security guard were shot and wounded .
City officials said the seeds for the violent crime spree were sewn on social media Sunday afternoon following an officer-involved shooting in the Englewood neighborhood .
Officers shot and wounded a 20-year-old man Sunday after he fired shots at them while being chased , authorities said .
At a news conference later Monday , after criticism from Lightfoot and Brown at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ County State ’ s Attorney Kim Foxx warned against trying to get “ an overly simplistic answer ” for what caused the overnight mayhem .
” The quest for a simple answer or a ‘ this must have caused this ’ is not a legitimate quest‚ ” she said .
“ We have to be thoughtful and I ’ m not here to tell you what the answer is.
” Going forward , Lightfoot and Brown said they will work to keep the downtown area restricted from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Atkins , an organizer , said the demonstration was put together as a response to the police-involved shooting Sunday in Englewood , where a 20-year-old man was injured after police said he fired shots at officers , and to support and seek the release of those who were arrested during the downtown looting that followed .
“ There ’ s no such thing as a bad protester , ” Atkins said .
“ Also , ( we ’ re ) demanding that police be defunded .
Police should not be here .
They @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ re giving them all this money to beat and terrorize us .
We ’ re giving them all this money when it ’ s like we ’ re in an actual pandemic and people need care right now , but you ’ re giving them police .
Her 20-year-old grandson Latrell Allen had been shot several times by police a day earlier after allegedly pointing a gun at officers near his home in Englewood .
“ I said to my husband , Jimmie , ‘ I believe they did the looting because @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the family has doubts about the police version of the shooting , Brown said she can not condone the looting that left 13 police officers injured , two people shot , more than 100 arrested and stores up and down the Magnificent Mile trashed — and once again cast a harsh light on a South Side community that has been making gains in its struggles against poverty and violence .
“ I don ’ t agree with the looting because that ’ s just an excuse to get what they want , ” @ @ @ @ @ @ @ about the looting , but the same way they feel about looting , I feel about our grandson.
” “ We have so many good people , so many wonderful people in this neighborhood , and we just hope that all that energy gets recognized , ” said Ald .
Stephanie Coleman , 16th .
“ I don ’ t know how that narrative ( about the looting ) started .
It ’ s an easy assumption to make , but when you start making those connections , you have to be really @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the people in this neighborhood .
And in this case , I don ’ t believe it ’ s fair.
” Without naming State ’ s Attorney Kim Foxx , Lightfoot called on prosecutors not to let suspects cycle through the system without consequences .
And Brown went so far as to imply that looters reoffended this weekend after getting away with the same crimes during the widespread unrest earlier this year , eliminating any deterrent .
“ ( Suspects ) get released , many charges get dropped , and so they feel @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he said .
“ Once prosecution and sentencing comes up , there ’ s no consequences.
” But Foxx , who is no stranger to accusations that she is soft on crime , flatly rejected that narrative at a news conference Monday .
Her office has not dropped any looting cases related to recent unrest , she said , calling for a response “ beyond a sound bite and a finger point.
” “ We just wanted to give y ’ all a heads-up that we got a call from an anonymous individual @ @ @ @ @ @ @ looting going on at 87th and the Dan Ryan , ” she said .
The anonymous caller was correct , but the shopping center break-in was just a taste of what was to come .
Within an hour , a caravan of cars headed to the Loop for an early morning looting spree that marked the worst night of unrest in Chicago since the police brutality protests of late May boiled into violence .
6:49 p.m. : In the wake of Englewood police shooting , a father of 5 goes viral on Twitter @ @ @ @ @ @ @ played in defusing tensions between neighbors and police But a college student ’ s video of Williams talking about how he and other local volunteers defused tensions at the site of the police shooting Sunday in Englewood has garnered more than 125,000 views , with comments such as “ Good man right here ” and “ If you want to know what ’ s happened in Chicago , here is a great eye witness.
” “ I feel good that we were able to shine a light on some of the truth , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the story , ” said Williams , 31 , founder of the children ’ s literacy nonprofit Mr. Dad ’ s Father ’ s Club .
“ I feel good to be able to share some of the intel from the boots on the ground .
I was excited to tell people about how we came together as organizers and activists to help protect that community.
” Social media has played a variety of roles in the aftermath of the Englewood police shooting , which left a 20-year-old man who allegedly fired at @ @ @ @ @ @ @ points such as Williams ’ citizen ’ s perspective on police action and community organizing , there have been lows such as false reports that police had shot and killed a 15-year-old .
What ’ s clear , said Kishonna Gray , a University of Illinois at Chicago assistant professor of communication , and gender and women ’ s studies , is that we ’ re hearing voices that wouldn ’ t have had a platform 30 years ago , when a few mainstream news reports would have sketched out the facts of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at officers about being chased on a block not far from Allen ’ s address .
He was was taken to University of Chicago Medical Center and is expected to survive , authorities said , but it is unknown whether he will be able to attend court in person .
Thirteen officers were injured during the unrest , including a sergeant who was hit by a bottle .
A civilian and private security guard were shot and wounded .
It took police officers roughly four hours to get the downtown back under control @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at police and more police arrived .
Then more people arrived and using a SWAT team , deploying pepper spray gas a few times and using a BearCat to move people away from Madison Street .
2:39 p.m. : Employees were closing up for evening when bricks hurled through window at Roots Handmade Pizza in the South Loop Workers were in the midst of closing for the night early Monday when a couple pieces of brick were hurled through the front window of Roots Handmade Pizza in the South Loop , at 744 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was physically injured , said co-owner Greg Mohr , although at least two staffers were said to be “ freaked out ” by the incident .
” Mentally two staff especially are really shaken up , so we ’ re gon na address that and take care of that .
If they need to get some help , we ’ ll do that also , ” he said .
“ It ’ s already obviously a weird time to be working and doing all these things , and then that happens , it @ @ @ @ @ @ @ what we can.
” Mohr said the break-in occurred about 2 a.m. Monday morning .
He had heard about some unrest in the area but hadn ’ t heard specific reports in the South Loop before then .
Employees immediately called the police and the restaurant ’ s private security partner , and the latter soon arrived to watch the storefront for the remainder of the night .
Mohr said he was eventually instructed to call 311 to file a police report .
” Eventually ( the police ) did come , but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ report .
They were told not to take a police report , because they wanted to keep cops patrolling , ” he said .
“ Even this morning , later in the morning , they were still just told to patrol and not take a report per se .
We were told to call 311 if we wanted to file a report.
” Much of the damage on Michigan Avenue and State Street is at the base of office towers , whose owners have been implementing widespread safety measures to welcome back workers @ @ @ @ @ @ @ leasing and management services at MB Real Estate .
His firm manages 20 million square feet of commercial buildings in downtown Chicago .
” We really thought we had turned the corner , and we were seeing people coming back to offices again , ” Purcell said .
“ I hope this doesn ’ t cause office tenants to add to their concerns about coming downtown to work in this pandemic .
If more people stay away , more of these retailers will suffer.
” Many of the hardest-hit stores have been large @ @ @ @ @ @ @ managers worry that repeated break-ins will cause retailers of all types to rethink their presence downtown , Purcell said .
” I was already concerned as it relates to COVID that a lot of these retailers that contribute to the vibrancy of downtown are already suffering , and many are not coming back , ” Purcell said .
” There are entrepreneurs who are not going to take that risk now , and lenders that will not extend loans to these businesses .
There also are high-profile , deep-pocketed retailers who might decide @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
They ’ re paying so much rent and so much in taxes .
I ’ m concerned.
” 1:51 p.m. : Downtown access will again be restricted 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. Monday into Tuesday .
What to know about bridge lifts , bus , train and travel on expressways , city streets But in updates to residents about the looting that prompted the emergency measures — aimed at keeping people away from the city center after dark — state and city leaders said access to downtown again would be restricted Monday @ @ @ @ @ @ @ simple answer or a ‘ this must have caused this ’ is not a legitimate quest‚ ” she said .
“ We have to be thoughtful and I ’ m not here to tell you what the answer is.
” And she defended her office ’ s record on cases involving looting suspects .
Her office has not dropped any of the looting-related felonies it approved after unrest in late May and early June , she said .
Foxx ’ s office did implement a policy encouraging prosecutors to drop certain protest-related charges @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ’ s death .
But those low-level cases should not be conflated with burglary charges connected to looting , she said .
“ It does not serve us to have dishonest blame games when all of our hearts are breaking by what we are seeing , ” she said .
12:57 p.m. : In wake of downtown looting , Mayor Lori Lightfoot says Chicago does not need National Guard help Mayor Lori Lightfoot rejected calls for the National Guard to patrol Chicago in the wake of overnight looting downtown while defending herself on @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to protect the city .
Lightfoot said she spoke with Illinois Gov .
J.B. Pritzker and neither believes the National Guard is needed at this time .
The city has been working with the state police , she said .
Lightfoot also preemptively criticized President Donald Trump , who has previously threatened to send in federal agents to intervene in Chicago street crime .
He recently sent a bunch of agents to the city as part of Operation Legend , which Lightfoot said she supports as long as it ’ s operating through @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , no , we do not need federal troops in Chicago , period , full stop , ” Lightfoot said .
“ I ’ m sure the president will have his way with this incident but I ’ m calling upon him to do the things that we do need , ” such as making changes to the nation ’ s gun laws .
” We wanted to ensure that you knew that the museum will be closed today , Monday , August 10 , ” the museum wrote in an email to @ @ @ @ @ @ @ impacts a planned visit today .
We expect the museum to reopen soon and will update the website accordingly.
” “ The unrest in Chicago overnight and early this morning , as well as the transit shutdowns today , challenged the ability of staff needing to come in early to prepare the museum for opening , so the decision was made to leave the museum closed for the day , ” spokeswoman Kati Murphy said via text .
MCA Chicago , located close to the hard-hit Water Tower Place area , was already @ @ @ @ @ @ @ its new , pandemic hours .
On the Museum Campus , Shedd Aquarium and Field Museum were open Monday , while Adler Planetarium has never reopened since closing in mid-March .
11:40 a.m. : Loop , Near North stores hit overnight , some after were vandalized and looted earlier in the summer Daneshgar said he reviewed his store security footage and that there were nearly 50 people in his store overnight .
The jewelry was in a safe , but the looters still destroyed showcases , windows and computers , he said .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ Monday morning cleaning up heavily damaged stores , a little more than two months after doing so in the aftermath of the looting that followed George Floyd ’ s killing at the hands of police in Minneapolis .
The previous break-in created close to $ 1 million in property damage and theft , Stein estimated .
He said it was too early to know the extent of Monday morning ’ s looting , but extensive damage included shattered glass inside and outside the store — including to the rare and collectible room , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 15,000 are stored .
” It kind of took us by surprise , ” Stein said .
“ It was very targeted .
They definitely knew what they wanted .
We ’ re making the assumption these guys had been here before .
I wouldn ’ t be surprised if it was the same crew from the first time.
” Binny ’ s Marcey Street store closed for almost a week after the first incident , and a closure of at least a few days is expected again to repair damage and take @ @ @ @ @ @ @ s is not considering closing the store permanently , Stein said .
” We ’ re proud that we employ 90 people at this location , and if this went away that would be 90 people out of work , ” Stein said .
“ That ’ s not going to happen .
We just have to understand how we can prepare for this going forward .
We have made some adjustments since the last time .
Some worked , some didn ’ t. ” 11:27 a.m. : Pritzker says he reached out @ @ @ @ @ @ @ State Police Director Brendan Kelly has been in touch with Chicago Police officials , and “ we want to make sure that we ’ re doing everything we can to support the city as we did back in May and June when looting and mayhem was occurring back then , ” Pritzker said at an unrelated news conference in Chicago.
” Criminals need to be held accountable , there ’ s no doubt it , ” Pritzker said .
“ I have , of course , been an advocate for police accountability and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ said that , these were criminals — people who broke in , and were shooting at people .
We had 13 , I believe , 13 Chicago police officers who were injured last night .
This is criminal activity and those criminals need to be held accountable.
” 11:20 a.m. : Gift shop that had just reopened following May looting is hit again The situation Monday wasn ’ t as bad as last time , owner Dianne Crosell said as she stood outside of her shop in front of the smashed double-paned glass @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in through a window and took most of her inventory .
Monday , it was mostly just the damage from broken glass .
Still , it will be hard to rebuild again , Crosell said .
Insurance helped last time , but she said there is a limit .
Crosell opened the business in 2006 , and she ’ s worried about the long-term damage repeated lootings and a pandemic will have on businesses in the city .
At open U-Haul sat parked , back open , nearby on Huron Street .
It @ @ @ @ @ @ @ was in the back except a few bandanas and a bag of Skittles .
Culber said he thought the U-Haul had been used for the looting , but then abandoned because of the flat tire .
Passersby were hit with blasts of cold air pouring out of broken windows from air conditioned shops .
At Ralph Lauren , workers used snow shovels and push brooms to clean up a broken display window .
But besides the broken glass , the clothes and other merchandise in the window appeared untouched .
Mullins has owned @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 20 years .
It ’ s normally full of accessories , hats , handbags and anything else “ ladies need to get ourselves together.
” It was one of dozens downtown that were looted overnight .
“ I just don ’ t know what the next move is going to be , ” she said .
“ I ’ m out of work .
They ’ ve destroyed everything , they ’ ve taken all the merchandise that I have to sell , then this requires an investment of money to rebuild and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ American , has lived in Chicago since 1979 .
She has customers who ’ ve been with her the whole time , since she opened her shop .
“ This is my livelihood , for 20 years .
I ’ m not sure what I ’ m going to do , ” she said .
“ I ’ m just still in shock , still stunned.
” “ Jewelry , handbags , clothing , all of it ’ s gone , ” she said .
“ Trying to get business open and thriving @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mess .
I don ’ t know what this means .
This is my livelihood.
” Mullins , 71 , described it as “ mob activity , ” not just street gangs at work .
She noted how organized it seemed and how some looters were using tools to gain entry to places , just like the looting in late May and early June .
Her store was spared then because it had already been boarded up following a burglary in April , during the beginning of the pandemic .
“ It ’ @ @ @ @ @ @ @ she said .
… “ Let ’ s dig to the root of the problem , let ’ s not look at the surface and pretend that it ’ s all those looters of those whatever — and I ’ m not absolving them from their criminal behavior and their participation , truly they need to be disciplined — but we need to get to the bottom of this otherwise well this problem will never be solved and it will continue again and again.
” Mullins noted the potential political implications of the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , and her fiance Bruce Carey said this didn ’ t have anything to do with the Black Lives Matter movement .
“ This is strictly criminal activity , planned by criminal gangs , in order to loot .
These are pandemic times .
There is no money in the streets , ” he said .
“ 118 million people are unemployed and a store owner like her can ’ t get stimulus money because Congress is holding it up.
” Carey , 67 , said he thinks the mayor is doing the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ know how she can help businesses here .
He noted the circumstances conspiring against Mullins — high rent , no foot traffic , nobody to purchase merchandise , the still unresolved insurance claim from the April burglary and now looting overnight .
He said they don ’ t support defunding police , but does support reassessing police so they aren ’ t as militarized .
He doesn ’ t support the use of federal officers like what happened in Portland .
He said small businesses need police protection .
“ That ’ s @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , noting that what ’ s happening here could potentially end up in a loop on Fox News .
“ We ’ re Black , we understand that , we face that pressure the same .
But you also understand the systemic conditions that have helped create that .
The pandemic has … no kids have summer jobs , all these kids on the street .
You ’ re fed through media , social media , to want materialism .
Gucci , Burberry .
The criminals are taking advantage .
This is a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , not get caught.
” “ We saw what happened last time rather than sit around and watch it on TV we thought we would get out and try to help.
” ” I was inspired by people who showed up first , ” Tedeschi who came out after seeing people on the news helping with cleanup efforts .
“ I saw people , they were showing this on the news , and I was inspired.
” Dozens of electronic security tags litter the parking lot shared by Ulta , Best Buy and @ @ @ @ @ @ @ all of which had been looted overnight .
Residents had mostly cleaned up the area by 8:15 a.m. , loading cardboard boxes , bags stuffed with Styrofoam , broken TVs and other trash .
10:30 a.m. : Owner of Central Camera , the iconic Loop business hit by looting in May , struggles to understand overnight destruction Don Flesch , the owner of the Loop ’ s iconic Central Camera , was on his way downtown Monday morning to check on his 121-year-old business , which is still being renovated after being burned @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , the third-generation owner of the shop , gained widespread internet support for keeping his cool after his family business burned last time , refusing to be angry at the people who destroyed it .
He said he understood the sentiment behind the unrest that swept the city less than three months ago .
Monday morning , though , he was struggling to comprehend what had fueled the overnight destruction .
” Why ?
Who ’ s behind it ?
” he wondered .
“ It ’ s not really a sensible thing @ @ @ @ @ @ @ and disrupt this country.
” Flesch said he worries the most recent looting will slow down the city ’ s recovery .
The looting and destruction in May was as a double whammy for Chicago ’ s businesses , which had just begun to reopen after the pandemic forced them to shut down .
However , by 8:30 a.m. Monday , Flesch said he had already heard of neighbors coming out to help clean up .
He took that as a sign of optimism and hope .
” We will evaluate day by @ @ @ @ @ @ @ send out updates as we have them , ” said a text alert from the dispensary .
The Herbal Care Center , which is north of the Pilsen neighborhood , was heavily damaged in the looting in late May that followed the death of George Floyd .
It re-opened in early July .
9:48 a.m. : Aftermath of looting in downtown Chicago : 13 cops injured , two people shot , more than 100 arrests , Mag Mile trashed More than 100 people were arrested as of 9 a.m. , according to Chicago @ @ @ @ @ @ @ officers were injured during the unrest , including a sergeant who was hit by a bottle .
A civilian and private security guard were shot and wounded .
“ What occurred in our downtown and surrounding communities was abject criminal behavior , pure and simple , ” Mayor Lori Lightfoot said .
“ And there can not be any excuse for it .
Period.
” City officials said the seeds for the violent crime spree were sewn on social media Sunday afternoon following an officer-involved shooting in the Englewood neighborhood .
Officers shot @ @ @ @ @ @ @ he fired shots at them while being chased , authorities said .
The man was taken to University of Chicago Medical Center and is expected to survive , Brown said .
More than an hour after the shooting , police and witnesses said a crowd of about 30 people faced off against officers holding a police line near 56th and Aberdeen streets .
Authorities said someone fed false information to the angry group , including that police shot and wounded a child .
During a scuffle , one officer was hit with pepper @ @ @ @ @ @ @ minor shoulder injury .
Two people were arrested and a police car was shattered by a brick , police added .
A large number of officers cordoned off streets in nearly every direction until the mood of the crowd cooled off .
But by that time , Brown said , messages began appearing on social media encouraging people to head downtown .
The looting and vandalism began shortly after , with people streaming in and out of high-end stores .
Some could be seen throwing merchandise into rental trucks and other large vehicles @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not an organized protest , ” Brown said .
“ Rather this was an incident of pure criminality .
This was an act of violence against our police officers and against our city.
” 8:18 a.m. : Commuting ?
CTA , roads reopening , bridges going down as overnight looting subsides downtown As police activity and unrest subsided in downtown Chicago , emergency officials Monday morning said the city was reopening blocked expressway entrance ramps , restarting Chicago Transit Authority service into downtown , and lowering bridges , even as some streets were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ had been centered in the Streeterville and North Michigan Avenue area , was beginning to die down as authorities worked to reopen after some of the city ’ s swankiest stores were hit .
Some closures remained in effect downtown Monday morning , and Cook County courts except for bond court were to be closed Monday .
The expressway closures began in early morning and were ending just before 7 a.m. as police were able to quell some of the unrest , according to Trooper Gabriela Ugarte , an Illinois State Police spokeswoman @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a.m. : Chicago police return fire as looters hit Mag Mile , smashing windows and confronting officers Hundreds of people swept through the Magnificent Mile and other parts of downtown Chicago early Monday , smashing windows , looting stores , confronting police and at one point exchanging gunfire with officers , authorities said .
The officers had stopped several people on Lake Street near Michigan Avenue when shots were fired from a passing car around 4:30 a.m. , nearly five hours into the widespread vandalism , according to police spokesman Tom Ahern .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ car was hit , he said .
It was not known if anyone in the gunman ’ s car was shot .
Ahern said other officers were injured through the night .
Earlier , an officer was seen slumped against a building by Grand and Wabash avenues as other other cops tended to him .
It was unclear what had happened to him .
Ahern had no details on the injuries .
5:24 a.m. : Bridges into the Loop raised 4:48 a.m. : Police and crowd get into shouting match 3:57 a.m. : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 3:21 a.m. : Looting and vandalism in downtown Chicago 2:30 a.m. : Police chase people out of Macy ’ s

Damaged windows at the Zara store following early morning looting in downtown Chicago on Aug. 10, 2020. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
Mayor Lori Lightfoot rejected calls for the National Guard to patrol Chicago in the wake of overnight looting downtown while defending herself on Monday from criticism that her administration failed to protect the city.
“Again, no, we do not need federal troops in Chicago, period, full stop,” Lightfoot said. “I’m sure the president will have his way with this incident but I’m calling upon him to do the things that we do need,” such as making changes to the nation’s gun laws.
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The mayor’s comments came after hundreds of people swept through the Magnificent Mile and other parts of downtown Chicago early Monday, smashing windows, looting stores, confronting police and at one point exchanging gunfire with officers, authorities said.
The looting began shortly after midnight as people darted through broken store windows and doors along Michigan Avenue carrying shopping bags full of merchandise. Cars dropped off more people as the crowd grew. At least one U-Haul van was seen pulling up.
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More than 100 people were arrested as of 9 a.m., according to Chicago Police Supt. David Brown. Thirteen officers were injured during the unrest, including a sergeant who was hit by a bottle. A civilian and private security guard were shot and wounded.
City officials said the seeds for the violent crime spree were sewn on social media Sunday afternoon following an officer-involved shooting in the Englewood neighborhood. Officers shot and wounded a 20-year-old man Sunday after he fired shots at them while being chased, authorities said.
At a news conference later Monday, after criticism from Lightfoot and Brown at an early morning news conference, Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx warned against trying to get “an overly simplistic answer” for what caused the overnight mayhem.
”The quest for a simple answer or a ‘this must have caused this’ is not a legitimate quest‚” she said. “We have to be thoughtful and I’m not here to tell you what the answer is.”
Going forward, Lightfoot and Brown said they will work to keep the downtown area restricted from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. for as long as is necessary.
[ Downtown businesses on edge after this morning’s looting, vandalism. ‘I feel like we are under attack.' ]
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Here’s the latest on overnight looting in Chicago and the aftermath:
9:30 p.m.: Black Lives Matter protest: ‘We don’t need police. We need care.’
About 100 people gathered outside the Central District station on Monday evening in a demonstration organized by Black Lives Matter Chicago. Several protesters held a banner that read, “Our futures have been looted from us ... loot back.”
Ariel Atkins, an organizer, said the demonstration was put together as a response to the police-involved shooting Sunday in Englewood, where a 20-year-old man was injured after police said he fired shots at officers, and to support and seek the release of those who were arrested during the downtown looting that followed.
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“There’s no such thing as a bad protester,” Atkins said. “Also, (we’re) demanding that police be defunded. Police should not be here. They should not exist, especially because we’re giving them all this money to beat and terrorize us. We’re giving them all this money when it’s like we’re in an actual pandemic and people need care right now, but you’re giving them police.
“We don’t need police,” she said. “We need care.”
Read more here. —Paige Fry
Englewood residents say downtown looting should not tarnish their neighborhood. ‘I don’t believe it’s fair.’
Joyce Brown had just left the University of Chicago Medical Center, joyful her grandson would recover from being shot, when she heard about the looting downtown early Monday.
“We saw it on the news and I said, ‘What are they looting for?’ " said Brown, 65. It didn’t take long to figure out.
Her 20-year-old grandson Latrell Allen had been shot several times by police a day earlier after allegedly pointing a gun at officers near his home in Englewood. “I said to my husband, Jimmie, ‘I believe they did the looting because of what happened to Latrell.”
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While the family has doubts about the police version of the shooting, Brown said she cannot condone the looting that left 13 police officers injured, two people shot, more than 100 arrested and stores up and down the Magnificent Mile trashed — and once again cast a harsh light on a South Side community that has been making gains in its struggles against poverty and violence.
“I don’t agree with the looting because that’s just an excuse to get what they want,” Brown said. “That was wrong about the looting, but the same way they feel about looting, I feel about our grandson.”
While long-simmering distrust of police and growing tensions from the pandemic may have helped fueled the looting, Brown insisted “it’s still no excuse.”
The alderman who represents Englewood fears its residents will now be unfairly tarnished as looters.
“We have so many good people, so many wonderful people in this neighborhood, and we just hope that all that energy gets recognized,” said Ald. Stephanie Coleman, 16th. “I don’t know how that narrative (about the looting) started. It’s an easy assumption to make, but when you start making those connections, you have to be really careful because that’s reflecting on the people in this neighborhood. And in this case, I don’t believe it’s fair.”
Read more here. —Will Lee, Annie Sweeney and John Byrne
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8:20 p.m.: State’s Attorney Kim Foxx bristles at insinuation her office’s handling of earlier cases emboldened looters
After looters caused mayhem on the Magnificent Mile early Monday, Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot and police Superintendent David Brown pointed fingers at a now-familiar target: Cook County prosecutors and judges.
Without naming State’s Attorney Kim Foxx, Lightfoot called on prosecutors not to let suspects cycle through the system without consequences. And Brown went so far as to imply that looters reoffended this weekend after getting away with the same crimes during the widespread unrest earlier this year, eliminating any deterrent.
“(Suspects) get released, many charges get dropped, and so they feel emboldened to do it more,” he said. “Once prosecution and sentencing comes up, there’s no consequences.”
But Foxx, who is no stranger to accusations that she is soft on crime, flatly rejected that narrative at a news conference Monday. Her office has not dropped any looting cases related to recent unrest, she said, calling for a response “beyond a sound bite and a finger point.”
Read more here. —Megan Crepeau and Dan Hinkel
7:56 p.m.: ‘There’s gonna be looting going on’: Long night of unrest follows Englewood shooting
At 11:07 p.m. Sunday, a Chicago police dispatcher relayed the first indication that chaos was about to return to the city.
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“We just wanted to give y’all a heads-up that we got a call from an anonymous individual that there’s gonna be looting going on at 87th and the Dan Ryan,” she said.
The anonymous caller was correct, but the shopping center break-in was just a taste of what was to come. Within an hour, a caravan of cars headed to the Loop for an early morning looting spree that marked the worst night of unrest in Chicago since the police brutality protests of late May boiled into violence.
Here’s how a night of unrest unfolded. —Chicago Tribune staff
6:49 p.m.: In the wake of Englewood police shooting, a father of 5 goes viral on Twitter with a heartfelt video highlighting role activists played in defusing tensions between neighbors and police
Social media stardom took Joseph Williams by surprise. The South Side community activist doesn’t even have a Twitter account.
But a college student’s video of Williams talking about how he and other local volunteers defused tensions at the site of the police shooting Sunday in Englewood has garnered more than 125,000 views, with comments such as “Good man right here” and “If you want to know what’s happened in Chicago, here is a great eye witness.”
“I feel good that we were able to shine a light on some of the truth, because there are always two sides to the story,” said Williams, 31, founder of the children’s literacy nonprofit Mr. Dad’s Father’s Club.
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“I feel good to be able to share some of the intel from the boots on the ground. I was excited to tell people about how we came together as organizers and activists to help protect that community.”
Social media has played a variety of roles in the aftermath of the Englewood police shooting, which left a 20-year-old man who allegedly fired at police wounded. In addition to high points such as Williams’ citizen’s perspective on police action and community organizing, there have been lows such as false reports that police had shot and killed a 15-year-old.
What’s clear, said Kishonna Gray, a University of Illinois at Chicago assistant professor of communication, and gender and women’s studies, is that we’re hearing voices that wouldn’t have had a platform 30 years ago, when a few mainstream news reports would have sketched out the facts of the case.
Read more here. —Nara Schoenberg
6:43 p.m.: Man charged in Englewood shooting that sparked Sunday night looting in downtown Chicago
A 20-year-old Englewood man who allegedly fired on police — and was shot by officers in return — was charged with attempted murder Monday, according to a news release from Chicago police.
Latrell Allen, of the 5600 block of South Aberdeen Street, is expected to have a bond hearing Tuesday on two counts of attempted murder and one count of unlawful gun possession.
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Allen allegedly fired shots at officers about being chased on a block not far from Allen’s address. He was was taken to University of Chicago Medical Center and is expected to survive, authorities said, but it is unknown whether he will be able to attend court in person.
Widespread false claims about the shooting, including one that said police shot a young teenager, allegedly gave rise to a heated scuffle at the scene Sunday afternoon and then fueled social-media messages urging people to head downtown and loot.
Allen pleaded guilty to burglary last year and was sentenced to probation, records show. He also faces a pending misdemeanor reckless conduct and child endangerment case from earlier this year, according to court records.
Read more here. —Megan Crepeau
3:35 p.m.: Overnight on the Magnificent Mile: Timeline of what Tribune reporters saw
More than 100 people were arrested early Monday following looting and vandalism through the Magnificent Mile and other parts of downtown Chicago.
Thirteen officers were injured during the unrest, including a sergeant who was hit by a bottle. A civilian and private security guard were shot and wounded. It took police officers roughly four hours to get the downtown back under control.
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Read more here. —Chad Yoder and Kori Rumore
2:47 p.m.: Police respond to reports of West Side looting
Police early Monday afternoon responded to reports of people looting on the West Side, with police numbers growing as the afternoon went on.
People who gathered in the area said police came to the area because of reports of looting near Madison Street and Pulaski Road.
People began throwing rocks and bottles at police and more police arrived. Then more people arrived and using a SWAT team, deploying pepper spray gas a few times and using a BearCat to move people away from Madison Street.
Chicago police attempt to secure the shopping district around the intersection of Madison St., and Karlov Ave., after reports of looting on Aug, 10, 2020. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
Things had started calming down at Madison and Karlov before police started moving into nearby neighborhood.
By mid-afternoon there had been several rounds of confrontations between police and people in the area.
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Police from at least five different districts plus detectives were in the area.
At least one car had bricks thrown in a window.
—Peter Nickeas
2:39 p.m.: Employees were closing up for evening when bricks hurled through window at Roots Handmade Pizza in the South Loop
Workers were in the midst of closing for the night early Monday when a couple pieces of brick were hurled through the front window of Roots Handmade Pizza in the South Loop, at 744 S. Dearborn St. Fortunately, no one was physically injured, said co-owner Greg Mohr, although at least two staffers were said to be “freaked out” by the incident.
After seeing that there were people working in the store, Mohr said the instigators fled.
”Mentally two staff especially are really shaken up, so we’re gonna address that and take care of that. If they need to get some help, we’ll do that also,” he said. “It’s already obviously a weird time to be working and doing all these things, and then that happens, it sucks, so we’re doing what we can.”
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Mohr said the break-in occurred about 2 a.m. Monday morning. He had heard about some unrest in the area but hadn’t heard specific reports in the South Loop before then.
Employees immediately called the police and the restaurant’s private security partner, and the latter soon arrived to watch the storefront for the remainder of the night. Mohr said he was eventually instructed to call 311 to file a police report.
”Eventually (the police) did come, but they wouldn’t take a police report. They were told not to take a police report, because they wanted to keep cops patrolling,” he said. “Even this morning, later in the morning, they were still just told to patrol and not take a report per se. We were told to call 311 if we wanted to file a report.”
Roots is open for dinner service Monday after boarding its storefront. Mohr said he is prepared to change plans, though, if any staff feels unsafe.
”At the end of the day, we lucked out in a lot of ways. It could have been a lot worse,” he said.
—Adam Lukach
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2:34 p.m.: One real estate exec worries the looting will discourage businesses from bringing workers back to the office
Much of the damage on Michigan Avenue and State Street is at the base of office towers, whose owners have been implementing widespread safety measures to welcome back workers, said Kevin Purcell, president of leasing and management services at MB Real Estate. His firm manages 20 million square feet of commercial buildings in downtown Chicago.
”We really thought we had turned the corner, and we were seeing people coming back to offices again,” Purcell said. “I hope this doesn’t cause office tenants to add to their concerns about coming downtown to work in this pandemic. If more people stay away, more of these retailers will suffer.”
Many of the hardest-hit stores have been large national chains, but property owners and managers worry that repeated break-ins will cause retailers of all types to rethink their presence downtown, Purcell said.
”I was already concerned as it relates to COVID that a lot of these retailers that contribute to the vibrancy of downtown are already suffering, and many are not coming back,” Purcell said.
”There are entrepreneurs who are not going to take that risk now, and lenders that will not extend loans to these businesses. There also are high-profile, deep-pocketed retailers who might decide it’s just not worth it. They’re paying so much rent and so much in taxes. I’m concerned.”
—Ryan Ori
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1:51 p.m.: Downtown access will again be restricted 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. Monday into Tuesday. What to know about bridge lifts, bus, train and travel on expressways, city streets
As police activity and unrest subsided in downtown Chicago, emergency officials Monday morning said the city was reopening blocked expressway entrance ramps, restarting Chicago Transit Authority service into downtown, and lowering bridges in time to ward off the worst for commuters.
But in updates to residents about the looting that prompted the emergency measures — aimed at keeping people away from the city center after dark — state and city leaders said access to downtown again would be restricted Monday night.
Read more here. —Katherine Rosenberg-Douglas
1:39 p.m.: Foxx responds to city officials’ criticism
At a news conference Monday, after criticism from Mayor Lori Lightfoot and Police Superintendent David Brown, Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx warned against trying to get “an overly simplistic answer” for what caused the overnight mayhem.
Cook County State's Attorney Kim Foxx speaks during a news conference, Aug. 10, 2020, after overnight looting in Chicago's Loop and other neighborhoods. (Brian Cassella / Chicago Tribune)
”The quest for a simple answer or a ‘this must have caused this’ is not a legitimate quest‚” she said. “We have to be thoughtful and I’m not here to tell you what the answer is.”
And she defended her office’s record on cases involving looting suspects. Her office has not dropped any of the looting-related felonies it approved after unrest in late May and early June, she said.
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And 71 percent of cases brought during the last concentrated period of public unrest were misdemeanors or city ordinance violations, not felonies, she said.
Foxx’s office did implement a policy encouraging prosecutors to drop certain protest-related charges related to the fallout over George Floyd’s death. But those low-level cases should not be conflated with burglary charges connected to looting, she said.
“It does not serve us to have dishonest blame games when all of our hearts are breaking by what we are seeing,” she said.
—Megan Crepeau
Kim Foxx drops more felony cases as Cook County state’s attorney than her predecessor, Tribune analysis shows
12:57 p.m.: In wake of downtown looting, Mayor Lori Lightfoot says Chicago does not need National Guard help
Mayor Lori Lightfoot rejected calls for the National Guard to patrol Chicago in the wake of overnight looting downtown while defending herself on Monday from criticism that her administration failed to protect the city.
Lightfoot said she spoke with Illinois Gov. J.B. Pritzker and neither believes the National Guard is needed at this time. The city has been working with the state police, she said.
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Lightfoot also preemptively criticized President Donald Trump, who has previously threatened to send in federal agents to intervene in Chicago street crime. He recently sent a bunch of agents to the city as part of Operation Legend, which Lightfoot said she supports as long as it’s operating through U.S. Attorney John Lausch.
“Again, no, we do not need federal troops in Chicago, period, full stop,” Lightfoot said. “I’m sure the president will have his way with this incident but I’m calling upon him to do the things that we do need,” such as making changes to the nation’s gun laws.
Read more here. —Gregory Pratt and John Byrne
11:47 a.m.: Art Institute closes for the day due to Loop shutdown and unrest
Among major cultural institutions, none reported sustaining damage. Only the Art Institute, located on Michigan Avenue, reacted. It closed for the day Monday. Tuesday and Wednesday are normal closure days since the museum reopened late last month.
”We wanted to ensure that you knew that the museum will be closed today, Monday, August 10,” the museum wrote in an email to patrons. “We regret if this impacts a planned visit today. We expect the museum to reopen soon and will update the website accordingly.”
The decision to close was also impacted by the city limiting access to the Loop in response to Sunday night’s events.
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“The unrest in Chicago overnight and early this morning, as well as the transit shutdowns today, challenged the ability of staff needing to come in early to prepare the museum for opening, so the decision was made to leave the museum closed for the day,” spokeswoman Kati Murphy said via text.
MCA Chicago, located close to the hard-hit Water Tower Place area, was already scheduled to be closed until Friday under its new, pandemic hours. On the Museum Campus, Shedd Aquarium and Field Museum were open Monday, while Adler Planetarium has never reopened since closing in mid-March.
—Steve Johnson
11:40 a.m.: Loop, Near North stores hit overnight, some after were vandalized and looted earlier in the summer
Monday morning, stores were scrambling to board up windows that were destroyed. The sound of power drills driving nails into wooden boards echoed along Wabash Avenue, occasionally being drowned out by “L” trains rattling overhead.
Jewelry stores appeared to be hit the hardest. At least five jewelry stores were vandalized along Jewelers Row on Wabash Avenue.
Koorosh Daneshgar, owner of Wedding Bands & Company, a jewelry store on 2 N. Wabash Ave., was dismayed Monday morning after his jewelry store was vandalized for the second time in the last few months.
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A Chicago police officer stands inside Diamonds on Wabash, one of several jewelry stores damaged after looting in the early morning hours of Aug. 10, 2020. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
Daneshgar said he reviewed his store security footage and that there were nearly 50 people in his store overnight. The jewelry was in a safe, but the looters still destroyed showcases, windows and computers, he said.
”It’s hard to describe,” Daneshgar said. “The Mayor has to do something. This is unacceptable.”
Among the jewelry stores looted and with smashed windows:
Chicago Landmark Diamond Center, 1 N. Wabash Ave.
Wedding Bands & Company by Koorosh, 2 N. Wabash
Windy City Diamonds, 1 S. Wabash
Chicago Jewelry Mall, 7 S. Wabash
Diamonds on Wabash, 15 S. Wabash
Police vehicles with their flashing emergency lights activated were positioned Monday morning up and down State Street downtown.
Among other stores hit were:
T-Mobile, 129 N. Wabash Ave. The window was smashed out with the shattered glass was spilled out onto the sidewalk. But the store’s metal shutters were pulled down.
Staples, 111 N. Wabash. A window was smashed out, but by 8:30 a.m., workers were on site to boarded up the broken window.
CBD Kratom, 28 E. Randolph St. All of the store’s windows were shattered. The shelves inside the store were toppled over, and the counter was smashed. Shortly before 8:45 a.m., two store employees began cleaning up the store.
Macy’s on State Street, 111 N. State St., had one window broken, and other stores in the area were boarding up, but in many cases, their doing so appeared to be preemptive, as there were no signs of damage.
—Javonte Anderson
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11:38 a.m.: Three local Binny’s stores damaged by looting
Binny’s Beverage Depot employees spent Monday morning cleaning up heavily damaged stores, a little more than two months after doing so in the aftermath of the looting that followed George Floyd’s killing at the hands of police in Minneapolis.
”We’re getting a little too comfortable with the rapid response to incidents like this,” Binny’s vice president Bradley Stein said from the store near Clybourn Avenue.
“This is not something we want to become proficient in.”
The store at 1720 N. Marcey St. was strewn with broken glass, cigars and other debris.
The previous break-in created close to $1 million in property damage and theft, Stein estimated. He said it was too early to know the extent of Monday morning’s looting, but extensive damage included shattered glass inside and outside the store — including to the rare and collectible room, where bottles valued as high as $15,000 are stored.
Brad Stein, a vice-president with Binny's, vacuums up shards of glass and spilled wine after looters broke in and took expensive bottles of champagne and wine from their River North location on Aug. 10, 2020. Three stores were damaged in last night's spree. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
”It kind of took us by surprise,” Stein said. “It was very targeted. They definitely knew what they wanted. We’re making the assumption these guys had been here before. I wouldn’t be surprised if it was the same crew from the first time.”
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Binny’s stores in the South Loop and River North also were damaged, Stein said.
The 50,000-square-foot store near Clybourn is one of the largest and highest-grossing among the family-owned company’s 42 stores, all in Illinois.
Large Apple and Best Buy stores were among several other businesses on and around Clybourn that were damaged.
”It’s difficult to see our city taking these hits like this,” Stein said.
Binny’s Marcey Street store closed for almost a week after the first incident, and a closure of at least a few days is expected again to repair damage and take inventory, Stein said. Binny’s is not considering closing the store permanently, Stein said.
”We’re proud that we employ 90 people at this location, and if this went away that would be 90 people out of work,” Stein said. “That’s not going to happen. We just have to understand how we can prepare for this going forward. We have made some adjustments since the last time. Some worked, some didn’t.”
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—Ryan Ori
11:27 a.m.: Pritzker says he reached out to Lightfoot to offer state help
Gov. J.B. Pritzker said Monday he reached out to Mayor Lori Lightfoot overnight to offer the state’s help, and Illinois State Police closed local expressway on-ramps and off-ramps “where necessary for the city of Chicago.”
Illinois State Police Director Brendan Kelly has been in touch with Chicago Police officials, and “we want to make sure that we’re doing everything we can to support the city as we did back in May and June when looting and mayhem was occurring back then,” Pritzker said at an unrelated news conference in Chicago.”
Criminals need to be held accountable, there’s no doubt it,” Pritzker said. “I have, of course, been an advocate for police accountability and for reforms, significant reforms. Having said that, these were criminals — people who broke in, and were shooting at people. We had 13, I believe, 13 Chicago police officers who were injured last night. This is criminal activity and those criminals need to be held accountable.”
—Jamie Munks
11:20 a.m.: Gift shop that had just reopened following May looting is hit again
Less than a week ago, jewelry and gift store Crosell & Co. reopened following looting in May. Early Monday morning, the store at 25 E. Huron St. was hit again.
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The situation Monday wasn’t as bad as last time, owner Dianne Crosell said as she stood outside of her shop in front of the smashed double-paned glass door. In May, looters broke in through a window and took most of her inventory. Monday, it was mostly just the damage from broken glass.
Still, it will be hard to rebuild again, Crosell said. Insurance helped last time, but she said there is a limit. Crosell opened the business in 2006, and she’s worried about the long-term damage repeated lootings and a pandemic will have on businesses in the city.
“If this keeps happening, why is anyone going to stay?” she said. “They’re ruining the city of Chicago.”
Dianne Crosell, owner of Crosell & Co., speaks about the damage to her shop following early morning looting on Aug. 10, 2020. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
Next door at Jonathan Adler interior design, the windows were smashed in. Manager Dwight Culber said the store was lucky.
“We’re mostly home furnishings. It’s larger scale stuff that’s harder to pick up and take away,” he said. “Overall, the store is still intact.”
At open U-Haul sat parked, back open, nearby on Huron Street. It had a flat tire, and nothing was in the back except a few bandanas and a bag of Skittles. Culber said he thought the U-Haul had been used for the looting, but then abandoned because of the flat tire.
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A few blocks over on Michigan Avenue, workers sawed and drilled as they boarded up broken windows.
Passersby were hit with blasts of cold air pouring out of broken windows from air conditioned shops. At Ralph Lauren, workers used snow shovels and push brooms to clean up a broken display window. But besides the broken glass, the clothes and other merchandise in the window appeared untouched.
—Ally Marotti
11:11 a.m.: Black-owned business hit on Near North Side
Patsy Mullins stepped over broken glass and shelves and black jewelry mannequins Monday morning while carpenters affixed particle board to the glassless front door of her store in the Near North neighborhood.
Mullins has owned the store, Accessorize, for nearly 20 years. It’s normally full of accessories, hats, handbags and anything else “ladies need to get ourselves together.” It was one of dozens downtown that were looted overnight.
“I just don’t know what the next move is going to be,” she said. “I’m out of work. They’ve destroyed everything, they’ve taken all the merchandise that I have to sell, then this requires an investment of money to rebuild and replenish.” Mullins, who is African American, has lived in Chicago since 1979. She has customers who’ve been with her the whole time, since she opened her shop.
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Monday morning, she sat inside her store trying to reach police and surveying the damage.
Patsy Mullins looks over the damage inside her boutique Accessorize that was cleaned out during looting in the Near North neighborhood early on Aug. 10, 2020. (E. Jason Wambsgans / Chicago Tribune)
“This is my livelihood, for 20 years. I’m not sure what I’m going to do,” she said. “I’m just still in shock, still stunned.”
No room of her shop was spared. Looters even emptied a small storage closet in the bathroom at the back of the store.
“Jewelry, handbags, clothing, all of it’s gone,” she said. “Trying to get business open and thriving again, it’s been a mess. I don’t know what this means. This is my livelihood.”
Mullins, 71, described it as “mob activity,” not just street gangs at work. She noted how organized it seemed and how some looters were using tools to gain entry to places, just like the looting in late May and early June. Her store was spared then because it had already been boarded up following a burglary in April, during the beginning of the pandemic.
“It’s not just people looting,” she said. … “Let’s dig to the root of the problem, let’s not look at the surface and pretend that it’s all those looters of those whatever — and I’m not absolving them from their criminal behavior and their participation, truly they need to be disciplined — but we need to get to the bottom of this otherwise well this problem will never be solved and it will continue again and again.”
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Mullins noted the potential political implications of the looting, it being an election year, and her fiance Bruce Carey said this didn’t have anything to do with the Black Lives Matter movement.
“This is strictly criminal activity, planned by criminal gangs, in order to loot. These are pandemic times. There is no money in the streets,” he said. “118 million people are unemployed and a store owner like her can’t get stimulus money because Congress is holding it up.”
Carey, 67, said he thinks the mayor is doing the best she can, but wants to know how she can help businesses here. He noted the circumstances conspiring against Mullins — high rent, no foot traffic, nobody to purchase merchandise, the still unresolved insurance claim from the April burglary and now looting overnight.
He said they don’t support defunding police, but does support reassessing police so they aren’t as militarized. He doesn’t support the use of federal officers like what happened in Portland. He said small businesses need police protection.
“That’s a political issue,” he said, noting that what’s happening here could potentially end up in a loop on Fox News. “We’re Black, we understand that, we face that pressure the same. But you also understand the systemic conditions that have helped create that. The pandemic has … no kids have summer jobs, all these kids on the street. You’re fed through media, social media, to want materialism. Gucci, Burberry. The criminals are taking advantage. This is a way for them to rob, steal, not get caught.”
—Peter Nickeas
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10:49 a.m.: Neighbors help clean up near North and Clybourn
Near North and Clybourn avenues, several stores had been looted overnight, and neighbors came out to help clean up looted stores.
Omeid Seid, 38, has lived in the area for five years.
”We woke up, didn’t realize what had happened,” Seid said. “Having a young kid we walk through this area regularly.”
“We saw what happened last time rather than sit around and watch it on TV we thought we would get out and try to help.”
Gary Tedeschi also showed up to help.
”I was inspired by people who showed up first,” Tedeschi who came out after seeing people on the news helping with cleanup efforts. “I saw people, they were showing this on the news, and I was inspired.”
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Dozens of electronic security tags litter the parking lot shared by Ulta, Best Buy and CVS, 1000 W. North Ave., all of which had been looted overnight.
Residents had mostly cleaned up the area by 8:15 a.m., loading cardboard boxes, bags stuffed with Styrofoam, broken TVs and other trash.
Volunteers brought out pickup trucks and dump trucks to help in the cleanup.
—Peter Nickeas
10:30 a.m.: Owner of Central Camera, the iconic Loop business hit by looting in May, struggles to understand overnight destruction
Don Flesch, the owner of the Loop’s iconic Central Camera, was on his way downtown Monday morning to check on his 121-year-old business, which is still being renovated after being burned and looted in late May.
”I’m going to see if our sign is OK,” he said.
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Flesch, the third-generation owner of the shop, gained widespread internet support for keeping his cool after his family business burned last time, refusing to be angry at the people who destroyed it. He said he understood the sentiment behind the unrest that swept the city less than three months ago. Monday morning, though, he was struggling to comprehend what had fueled the overnight destruction.
”Why? Who’s behind it?” he wondered. “It’s not really a sensible thing, except somebody wants to cause distress and disrupt this country.”
Flesch said he worries the most recent looting will slow down the city’s recovery. The looting and destruction in May was as a double whammy for Chicago’s businesses, which had just begun to reopen after the pandemic forced them to shut down.
However, by 8:30 a.m. Monday, Flesch said he had already heard of neighbors coming out to help clean up. He took that as a sign of optimism and hope.
—Ally Marotti
10:27 a.m.: Herbal Care Center dispensary closes Monday as a safety precaution
The Herbal Care Center marijuana dispensary closed Monday as a safety precaution following the looting that hit Michigan Avenue and other downtown areas overnight.
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”We will evaluate day by day from here and will continue to send out updates as we have them,” said a text alert from the dispensary.
The Herbal Care Center, which is north of the Pilsen neighborhood, was heavily damaged in the looting in late May that followed the death of George Floyd. It re-opened in early July.
—Ally Marotti
9:48 a.m.: Aftermath of looting in downtown Chicago: 13 cops injured, two people shot, more than 100 arrests, Mag Mile trashed
More than 100 people were arrested as of 9 a.m., according to Chicago Police Supt. David Brown. Thirteen officers were injured during the unrest, including a sergeant who was hit by a bottle. A civilian and private security guard were shot and wounded.
“What occurred in our downtown and surrounding communities was abject criminal behavior, pure and simple,” Mayor Lori Lightfoot said. “And there cannot be any excuse for it. Period.”
City officials said the seeds for the violent crime spree were sewn on social media Sunday afternoon following an officer-involved shooting in the Englewood neighborhood. Officers shot and wounded a 20-year-old man Sunday after he fired shots at them while being chased, authorities said.
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The man was taken to University of Chicago Medical Center and is expected to survive, Brown said.
More than an hour after the shooting, police and witnesses said a crowd of about 30 people faced off against officers holding a police line near 56th and Aberdeen streets. Authorities said someone fed false information to the angry group, including that police shot and wounded a child.
During a scuffle, one officer was hit with pepper spray and a second officer suffered a minor shoulder injury. Two people were arrested and a police car was shattered by a brick, police added.
A large number of officers cordoned off streets in nearly every direction until the mood of the crowd cooled off. But by that time, Brown said, messages began appearing on social media encouraging people to head downtown.
The looting and vandalism began shortly after, with people streaming in and out of high-end stores. Some could be seen throwing merchandise into rental trucks and other large vehicles before driving away.
“This was not an organized protest,” Brown said. “Rather this was an incident of pure criminality. This was an act of violence against our police officers and against our city.”
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Read more here. —Paige Fry, Jeremy Gorner, Gregory Pratt, Megan Crepeau and Stacy St. Clair
8:18 a.m.: Commuting? CTA, roads reopening, bridges going down as overnight looting subsides downtown
As police activity and unrest subsided in downtown Chicago, emergency officials Monday morning said the city was reopening blocked expressway entrance ramps, restarting Chicago Transit Authority service into downtown, and lowering bridges, even as some streets were remaining closed.
Looting, which overnight had been centered in the Streeterville and North Michigan Avenue area, was beginning to die down as authorities worked to reopen after some of the city’s swankiest stores were hit. Some closures remained in effect downtown Monday morning, and Cook County courts except for bond court were to be closed Monday.
The expressway closures began in early morning and were ending just before 7 a.m. as police were able to quell some of the unrest, according to Trooper Gabriela Ugarte, an Illinois State Police spokeswoman.
Read more here. —Katherine Rosenberg-Douglas
(Updated 7:35 a.m.) 3:33 a.m.: Chicago police return fire as looters hit Mag Mile, smashing windows and confronting officers
Hundreds of people swept through the Magnificent Mile and other parts of downtown Chicago early Monday, smashing windows, looting stores, confronting police and at one point exchanging gunfire with officers, authorities said.
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The officers had stopped several people on Lake Street near Michigan Avenue when shots were fired from a passing car around 4:30 a.m., nearly five hours into the widespread vandalism, according to police spokesman Tom Ahern. No officers were shot but a squad car was hit, he said. It was not known if anyone in the gunman’s car was shot.
Ahern said other officers were injured through the night. Earlier, an officer was seen slumped against a building by Grand and Wabash avenues as other other cops tended to him. It was unclear what had happened to him. Ahern had no details on the injuries.
Read more here. —Paige Fry and Jeremy Gorner
6:14 a.m.: After sunrise
Someone walking away with clothes along Randolph Street, near State Street. The Old Navy store got hit by looters overnight. pic.twitter.com/SxA70o1wUc — Jeremy Gorner (@JeremyGorner) August 10, 2020
5:24 a.m.: Bridges into the Loop raised
Bridges along the Chicago River are raised on Aug. 10, 2020. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)
4:48 a.m.: Police and crowd get into shouting match
Police return to the Louis Vuitton store after a group went in and out of the store. Here, the police and the crowd got into a shouting match from afar as the officers tried to make the crowd leave. pic.twitter.com/iJZjVWWT2x — Jeremy Gorner (@JeremyGorner) August 10, 2020
3:57 a.m.: Officer attended to at Grand and Wabash
A Chicago police officer was being attended to by other officers at Grand and Wabash Aves. pic.twitter.com/U5MOGZo4ij — Jeremy Gorner (@JeremyGorner) August 10, 2020
3:21 a.m.: Looting and vandalism in downtown Chicago
High-end retailers are getting looted and vandalized downtown early this morning. Hundreds of people ha e made their way to the downtown area. Chicago police on this video chase someone on North Michigan Avenue. pic.twitter.com/xkNHvss1qY — Jeremy Gorner (@JeremyGorner) August 10, 2020
2:30 a.m.: Police chase people out of Macy’s
Police chase a couple guys out of the Macy’s and dozens more come in. #ChicagoScanner #Chicago pic.twitter.com/61wKHUMWmL — Paige Fry (@paigexfry) August 10, 2020
2:09 a.m.: Chaotic scene in downtown Chicago
There are hundreds and hundreds of people downtown right now. #Chicago #ChicagoScanner pic.twitter.com/03CziG6vHo — Paige Fry (@paigexfry) August 10, 2020


chicagotribune--2020-08-11--Black Lives Matter protest: ‘We don’t need police. We need care.’

“ There ’ s no such thing as a bad protester , ” Atkins said .
“ Also , ( @ @ @ @ @ that police be defunded .
Police should not be here .
They should not exist @ @ @ @ @ re giving them all this money to beat and terrorize us .
We ’ re @ @ @ @ @ when it ’ s like we ’ re in an actual pandemic and people need @ @ @ @ @ you ’ re giving them police .

About 100 people gathered outside the Central District station on Monday evening in a demonstration organized by Black Lives Matter Chicago. Several protesters held a banner that read, “Our futures have been looted from us ... loot back.”
Ariel Atkins, an organizer, said the demonstration was put together as a response to the police-involved shooting Sunday in Englewood, where a 20-year-old man was injured after police said he fired shots at officers, and to support and seek the release of those who were arrested during the downtown looting that followed.
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“There’s no such thing as a bad protester,” Atkins said. “Also, (we’re) demanding that police be defunded. Police should not be here. They should not exist, especially because we’re giving them all this money to beat and terrorize us. We’re giving them all this money when it’s like we’re in an actual pandemic and people need care right now, but you’re giving them police.
“We don’t need police,” she said. “We need care.”
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After the Englewood shooting, police said a gun was recovered from the scene.
However, word had spread throughout the neighborhood that a 15-year-old boy was shot and killed by police.
“I don’t even think that the misinformation matters when at the end of the day, police, who are supposed to protect, shot somebody who was not endangering somebody,” she said. “The neighborhood reacted exactly as they would whether that person was 15 or 20.”
When asked about the man firing shots at police before officers returned fire, Atkins said she does not trust the police account of the shooting and believes those in the neighborhood who said the man did not have a gun.
Atkins said people are also hungry, unemployed and need resources, which boiled over into people resorting to looting.
The Black Abolitionist Network for the defund the police campaign is asking Mayor Lori Lightfoot to take away 75% of the Chicago Police Department’s budget, with the goal of eventually getting rid of all funding and using that money for education, jobs, housing, health care and more, Atkins said.
“I think (the looting) is fine. People protest however they need to. People do whatever they need. These businesses have insurance. They can get it all back. We can’t get our lives back once they kill us. We can’t get rid of that trauma once you’ve been attacked by a police officer.”


chicagotribune--2020-08-11--Man charged in Englewood shooting that sparked Sunday night looting in downtown Chicago

Police said Allen fired shots at officers chasing him on a block not far from Allen ’ s address .
@ @ @ @ @ of Chicago Medical Center and is expected to survive , authorities said , but it @ @ @ @ @ be able to attend court in person .

Officers stand near crime scene tape after an argument erupted between police and residents after Latrell Allen was shot three times by CPD officers after he allegedly fired several rounds at two officers near the 5700 block of South Racine Avenue in the Englewood neighborhood on Aug. 9, 2020. (Armando L. Sanchez / Chicago Tribune)
A 20-year-old Englewood man who allegedly fired on police — and was shot by officers in return — was charged with attempted murder Monday, according to a news release from Chicago police.
Latrell Allen, of the 5600 block of South Aberdeen Street, is expected to have a bond hearing Tuesday on two counts of attempted murder and one count of unlawful gun possession.
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Police said Allen fired shots at officers chasing him on a block not far from Allen’s address. He was taken to University of Chicago Medical Center and is expected to survive, authorities said, but it is unknown whether he will be able to attend court in person.
About 2:30 p.m. Sunday, police said, they responded to a call of a man with a gun in Englewood. Deputy Chief Yolanda Talley said the man fled when approached by officers, only to turn and fire at them. The officers returned fire, she said, wounding him.
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Authorities on Monday said the officers involved were from the new The Community Safety Team, designed to swarm into crime hot spots. The officers were not wearing body cameras, and disciplinary investigators said late Monday they had not found any video showing the shooting itself.
False claims about the shooting, including one that said police shot a 15-year-old, allegedly gave rise to a heated scuffle at the scene Sunday afternoon and then fueled social-media messages urging people to head downtown. Widespread looting and chaos followed.
Allen pleaded guilty to burglary last year and was sentenced to probation, records show. He also faces a pending misdemeanor reckless conduct and child endangerment case from earlier this year, according to court records.
mcrepeau@chicagotribune.com


chicagotribune--2020-08-11--Damaged homes, injuries, power outages reported as storm whips through Lake County

Doug Slazes , the chief of the Lake Villa Fire Protection District , which serves Lake Villa , Lindenhurst and @ @ @ @ @ , said one person slipped while trying to get inside to escape the storm .
@ @ @ @ @ to an area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries , but details were not available late Monday @

Downed trees are scattered around a home in Antioch Township after a storm Monday afternoon. (Eric Ring / HANDOUT)
Public works crews continued to remove uprooted trees and other debris Tuesday blown down the day before during thunderstorms with winds as intense as 90 mph in the northern and western portions of Lake County.
Officials reported no deaths or serious injuries, though at least one person was transported to a hospital with an injury that was not life-threatening. There was some structural damage to buildings, but no one was forced from their home because of the storms.
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It could take up to two weeks before public works crews fully remove all the storm debris, including dozens of fallen trees.
Fox Lake Police Chief Jimmy Lee said there were wind gusts between 80 and 90 mph when the storm came through the village.
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“It was a very intense storm, and there was some rotation when it was in Wisconsin,” Lee said. “It was all straight line winds here. We sounded the sirens and everyone had plenty of warning.”
Trees were uprooted in Antioch Township during a Monday afternoon storm. - Original Credit: News-Sun (Eric Ring / HANDOUT)
Joe Dushane, a deputy battalion chief with the Antioch Fire Department, said wind speeds were between 70 and 75 mph when the storm passed through that village.
“Utility poles snapped, and big trees were uprooted,” Dushane said. “There was some substantial damage to homes.”
Eric Ring, the highway commissioner of Antioch Township, said the heaviest damage was in the Grass Lake Road area. His area received assistance from Grant Township and private companies to unblock roads. He estimates it will take at least two weeks to recover.
Lindenhurst Police Chief Tom Jones said he was in contact with other police and fire officials as tornado sirens sounded. Jones said they estimated the straight line winds were blowing at 65 mph, but suspects there was not a tornado.
Dozens of trees were uprooted primarily in the northern and western portions of the county. Sgt Chris Covelli, the public information officer for the Lake County Sheriff’s Office said in an email. The department answered about 100 weather-related calls Monday, he said.
One tree fell and hit a house near unincorporated Lake Villa causing severe structural damage. Another downed tree destroyed a vehicle near Lake Villa. Along with the trees, the storm took out power lines, causing power outages.
John Schoen, a spokesperson for Commonwealth Edison said approximately 15,000 customers were without power at 6 p.m. Monday. As of noon Tuesday, Cristina Meesenburg, another ComEd spokesperson, said 7,236 homes remained without power.
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A tree that fell in unincorporated Lake Villa left the homeowner with a minor injury, Covelli said.
Doug Slazes, the chief of the Lake Villa Fire Protection District, which serves Lake Villa, Lindenhurst and parts of unincorporated Lake County, said one person slipped while trying to get inside to escape the storm. The individual was reportedly transported to an area hospital with non-life-threatening injuries.
Jones said approximately a third of Lindenhurst was without initially left without power as almost a dozen calls were received about wires down. He said the trees and wires that fell were primarily on private property, and roads were not blocked Monday. There was minor flooding reported on some residential streets.
Slazes said his department answered 20 storm-related calls. Most were for fallen trees, including others that struck homes and caused damage to the buildings.
“Some really big ones were uprooted,” Slazes said.
Grayslake Police Commander Brian Ernst said there were reports of flooding and tree limbs resting on power lines, but none were on the ground.
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Waukegan and Gurnee appeared to escape serious damage. Detective Shawn Gaylor of the Gurnee Police Department said harm was limited to some downed trees. Waukegan Police Commander Joe Florip said in a text there were no major difficulties reported.


chicagotribune--2020-08-11--Police shooting of Englewood man reignites political debate and looting as Mag Mile trashed, 13 cops

Police shooting of Englewood man reignites political debate and looting as Mag Mile trashed, 13 cops injured, 2 people shot

“ In a predictable and unfortunate move , she did not take this time to criticize her officers for shooting @ @ @ @ @ ” the organization ’ s statement read .
“ Lightfoot instead spent her time attacking @ @ @ @ @ clearly has not learned anything since May , and she would be wise to understand @ @ @ @ @ rising up until the CPD is abolished and our Black communities are fully invested in @ @

Paige Fry, Jeremy Gorner, Peter Nickeas, Gregory Pratt, Megan Crepeau, Stacy St. Clair, Claire Hao, William Lee, Dan Hinkel, Annie Sweeney, John Byrne, Javonte Anderson

Hundreds of people swept through the Magnificent Mile and other parts of downtown Chicago early Monday, smashing windows, looting stores and confronting police after officers shot a suspect in Englewood hours earlier.
The mayhem marked the second time since late May that the city’s upscale shopping district has been targeted by looters amid unrest, reigniting the debate over policing as city leaders continued to point fingers and downtown again was shut down overnight heading to Tuesday.
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As businesses owners boarded up shops and braced for the possibility of additional looting, some cautioned against simplifying the situation or blaming any single issue.
“It’s not just people looting,” said Patsy Mullins, whose Gold Coast store, Accessorize, was completely emptied. “Let’s dig to the root of the problem, let’s not look at the surface. ... We need to get to the bottom of this. Otherwise, well, this problem will never be solved and it will continue again and again.”
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City officials said the seeds for the crime spree were sown on social media Sunday afternoon, after officers shot and wounded a 20-year-old man who allegedly had fled and fired shots at them.
Mayor Lori Lightfoot on Monday decried “a false rumor on social media” that police officers killed a 15-year-old boy. That led residents to clash with police officers in Englewood and prompted calls to head toward downtown.
A Chicago police officer walks past Macy's on North Michigan Avenue in Chicago after the store and others in the area were looted early on Aug. 10, 2020. (Terrence Antonio James / Chicago Tribune)
The looting began around midnight, with people streaming in and out of high-end stores. Some could be seen throwing merchandise into a rental truck and other large vehicles before driving away.
“This was not an organized protest,” Chicago police Superintendent David Brown said. “Rather, this was an incident of pure criminality. This was an act of violence against our police officers and against our city.”
Black Lives Matter Chicago, which protested outside a Near South Side police precinct Monday night, blasted Lightfoot for accepting the police version of events and not doing more to institute reforms. The organization suggested the man was right to flee authorities, given the department’s history of racism and abusive tactics.
“In a predictable and unfortunate move, she did not take this time to criticize her officers for shooting yet another Black man,” the organization’s statement read. “Lightfoot instead spent her time attacking ‘looters.’ The mayor clearly has not learned anything since May, and she would be wise to understand that the people will keep rising up until the CPD is abolished and our Black communities are fully invested in.”
Workers clean up merchandise boxes outside the Best Buy store on North Avenue in Chicago's Lincoln Park neighborhood following looting on Aug. 10, 2020. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
More than 100 people have been arrested so far, according to Chicago police. At least three appeared in bond court Monday, including a 25-year-old Joliet man who police say threw a brick at them while trying to break into the Burberry store on North Michigan Avenue.
Thirteen officers were injured during the mayhem, authorities said. A civilian and private security guard were shot and wounded.
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In the wake of the unrest, shattered glass, broken mannequins, toiletries and shoe boxes littered the city’s toniest streets. Many store owners worried how they would survive the latest turmoil amid the pandemic and with insurance claims still unpaid from the previous looting spree.
“I just don’t know what the next move is going to be,” said Mullins, the accessory store owner. “I’m out of work. They’ve destroyed everything, they’ve taken all the merchandise that I have to sell. This requires an investment of money to rebuild and replenish.”
It took police officers roughly four hours to get downtown under control, leading to a political blame game and calls for the Illinois National Guard to once again help quell unrest in the country’s third-largest city.
Downtown Ald. Brian Hopkins, who said he was on Michigan Avenue from midnight to 4 a.m., described a scene in which officers were overwhelmed by looters and apparently did not have much of a plan for restoring order. He criticized Lightfoot for failing to develop an effective strategy following looting incidents in May and June.
“The real question today is, where was the strategy? What was the decision making at the highest levels?” said Hopkins, 2nd. “That means the police superintendent and the mayor, who’s a very hands-on mayor when it comes to these kinds of decisions.”
Chicago police keep watch outside a looted and damaged Apple Store at North and Clybourn avenues following early morning looting and violence Aug. 10, 2020. (Antonio Perez / Chicago Tribune)
The Black Lives Matter movement released a statement suggesting Lightfoot should not be surprised by the Magnificent Mile being targeted, given Chicago politicians have long valued protecting the high-rent area while poorer neighborhoods have suffered from disinvestment and neglect.
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“Over the past few months, too many people — disproportionately Black and Brown — have lost their jobs, lost their income, lost their homes, and lost their lives as the city has done nothing and the Chicago elite have profited,” the organization’s statement read. “When protesters attack high-end retail stores that are owned by the wealthy and service the wealthy, that is not ‘our’ city and has never been meant for us.”
Police shooting unfolds
The violent stretch began Sunday afternoon, when the Police Department’s newly created community safety team responded to a call about man with a gun in the Englewood neighborhood, authorities said. Officers found a man walking east on 57th Street and Racine Avenue matching the physical description and attempted to stop him, police said.
The man, later identified as 20-year-old Latrell Allen of Chicago, fled, leading to a foot chase by officers. Authorities said Allen shot at the officers during the chase and two officers returned fire.
Allen, who was taken to University of Chicago Medical Center, has been charged with two counts of attempted murder and unlawful use of a weapon, authorities said.
Chicago police investigate shootings that occurred in the early morning of Aug. 10, 2020, as sporadic looting occurred in Downtown Chicago. (Jose M. Osorio / Chicago Tribune)
Outside Allen’s Aberdeen Street home, his mother, Latricsa, received a rundown from a neighbor of the prior day’s events that ended with her son shot five times.
The mother’s voice raised as neighbor Tenisha Caldwell cast doubt on much of the police version of events. Caldwell said she watched from her front porch as an officer fired gunshots at the fleeing man. She also told Latricsa Allen that her son tried to give up before shots were fired.
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Allen expressed relief that her eldest son was expected to survive his five bullet wounds, each bullet having missed a vital organ.
“He said, ‘Mama, I’m all right,’” she recounted. “He said, ‘Mama I love you.’ I said, ‘I love you, too.’ He said, ‘Mama, they shot me. They shot me five times.’”
Allen said her son denied having a gun, though police posted a photo of a gun they said they found at the scene.
The community safety team officers were not wearing body cameras, meaning there may not be video to either support or challenge the department’s account. When pressed by the Tribune to explain the lack of video, a Police Department spokesman said those officers don’t wear cameras despite the team’s stated mission of intervening in Chicago’s most violent areas.
The Civilian Office Police Accountability, the city agency that investigates officer-involved shootings, said surveillance cameras showed “the pursuit of a man matching the description of the person (believed) to be in possession of a firearm.” Those recordings were not released. COPA also issued a public plea Monday for anyone with video or information about the shooting to come forward.
The lack of immediate, independent corroboration drew skepticism from several community groups, including Black Lives Matter Chicago.
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More than an hour after the Sunday shooting, police and witnesses said a crowd of about 30 people faced off against officers holding a police line near 56th and Aberdeen. Police said a man among the crowd stoked the group’s anger by passing along misinformation, including that police shot a teenage boy. During a scuffle, one officer was hit with pepper spray and a second officer suffered a minor shoulder injury.
A large number of officers cordoned off streets in nearly every direction until the mood of the crowd cooled off. But by that time, Brown said, messages began appearing on social media encouraging people to head downtown.
The officers had stopped several people on Lake Street near Michigan Avenue when shots were fired from a passing car around 4:30 a.m., nearly five hours into the widespread vandalism, police spokesman Tom Ahern said. No officers were shot, but a squad car was hit, he said. It was not known if anyone in the gunman’s car was shot.
Shortly after midnight, the looting began as people darted through broken store windows and doors along Michigan Avenue carrying shopping bags full of merchandise. Cars dropped off more people as the crowd grew.
One woman with shopping bags in her hands fell on the sidewalk as an officer was chasing her. Another woman appeared to have been pepper-sprayed. A rock was thrown at a squad car.
Brad Stein, center, hands Jason Knudsen, general manager of Binny's, expensive bottles of Champagne and wine they are removing from the store in River North in case of additional looting. (Stacey Wescott / Chicago Tribune)
Blame game begins
The scene was reminiscent of the looting that occurred more than two months ago amid the response to the killing of George Floyd at the hands of Minneapolis police. On Monday, both Lightfoot and Brown implicitly criticized Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx, saying there weren’t consequences for looters earlier this summer.
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Lightfoot, who endorsed Foxx for reelection, became angry when asked follow-up questions about Foxx’s handling of cases and told a reporter not to bait her.
“What we’re saying is, as a result of what happened last night, there have to be consequences,” Lightfoot said. “We’ve got teams of people that are aggressively out there identifying the people responsible, looking at the plates, and we’re going to bring them to justice.
“But when we do make those arrests, our expectation is that this is going to be treated with the level of seriousness it should be. Period,” she said. “Don’t try to bait us, mischaracterize, pit one against the other, we’re not playing that. We’re in a serious situation here and we need a serious response. That’s what we’re saying.”
Foxx pushed back with her own news conference a few hours later, insisting the cause of the unrest cannot be conflated with her office’s response to protests earlier this year. She encouraged prosecutors to dismiss misdemeanor charges — and felony charges, in certain cases — related to the protests, but said her office approved charges for the vast majority of looting-related felony arrests in the unrest earlier this summer.
Those cases are making their way through the courts, slowed by both the pandemic and typical pace of the Cook County justice system.
In denouncing the looting and promising to be tough on those responsible, Foxx said the situation also must be viewed amid the backdrop of a global health crisis, record unemployment and nationwide protests against systemic racism.
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“The reality is that as we seek to figure out what is happening in what is truly an unprecedented summer, it requires us to ask tough questions, to do deep deliberation and to put all hands on deck. All hands on deck means that rather than standing and pointing fingers, we work together.”
The idea that a lax criminal justice system alone paved the way for the looting oversimplifies the situation, said David Stovall, a professor of African American studies and criminology, law and justice at the University of Illinois at Chicago.
If the Sunday police shooting did touch off the reaction, then the decades of a strained relationship between police and the community has to be considered too.
Stovall said those who engaged in the looting are potentially reacting to that history and demonstrating their lack of trust in law enforcement. It’s not surprising that they questioned those official facts and then decided to “strike back,” he said.
“If we’re going to get hit, then we are going to strike back at the spaces that hurt you the most,” Stovall said, describing the mindset.
The looting seemed to be centered in Streeterville and on North Michigan Avenue, but some was reported on State Street in the Loop and on the Near North Side. Police appeared to be getting things under control by 4 a.m., though some vandalism continued into the daylight hours.
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The CTA suspended train and bus service into downtown during the morning rush, while Illinois State Police blocked off ramps from expressways. Bridges across the Chicago River were raised, except for the one on LaSalle Street for emergency vehicles. City officials said they will restrict access to the downtown from 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. for the time being.
Illinois House Republican leader Jim Durkin called for the National Guard to be brought in. The Guard was used to help enforce street closures during looting in early June, marking the first time in more than a half century that a Chicago mayor had asked for the Guard’s help in quelling unrest.
“Once again, Illinois government has failed to protect its residents and businesses,” said Durkin, a Western Springs legislator. “It is time to bring in the National Guard and accept any and all federal assistance to stop the chaos that is destroying our state. No more excuses. No more failures.”
The Illinois National Guard has not received any requests for support at this time.
Lightfoot, who has fought President Donald Trump’s insistence that federal troops are the best way to restore order in troubled American cities, said she will not seek military assistance.
“No, we do not need federal troops in Chicago, period, full stop,” Lightfoot said. “I’m sure the president will have his way with this incident, but I’m calling upon him to do the things that we do need (such as gun control).”


chicagotribune--2020-08-11--Swift-moving storm downs trees, power lines in south suburbs

Thomas Murray , the chief deputy director with Will County Emergency Management Agency , said while he did not want @ @ @ @ @ experienced across the region during the storm , officials were thankful the response largely consisted @ @ @ @ @ roads blocked by downed trees .
No major incidents were reported , he said .

Park Forest police responded Monday to numerous reports of damage and fallen trees as a result of a fast-moving storm. (Park Forest Police)
A fast-moving storm with strong winds downed trees and power lines in some south and southwest suburbs Monday afternoon.
Commonwealth Edison reported that as of early Monday evening more than 130,000 customers in the area were without power.
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Park Forest officials said crews were responding to multiple reports of damage, such as fallen trees and tree limbs, and that an estimated half of the village lacked electricity.
A Village Board meeting that had been scheduled for Monday evening was moved to next week.
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Park Forest police responded Monday to numerous reports of damage and fallen trees as a result of a fast-moving storm. (Park Forest Police)
Police Chief Christopher Mannino said there was a significant amount of damage as a result of the storm.
“We saw multiple vehicles damaged, several homes with roof and/or siding damaged, and other lesser property damage. The amount of downed trees and road obstructions are so numerous we likely won’t have a full assessment of the damage until tomorrow,” Mannino said.
Park Forest police responded to one cooperative where brick had fallen. (Park Forest police)
Deputy Chief Brian Rzyski said police responded to one cooperative where brick had fallen. In general, structural damage to residences was mostly to roofs, he said.
“We have been very busy assisting in downed limbs in clearing the roadways and downed power lines,” Rzyski said. “The area most affected by the storm is located in the area of Hemlock, Indianwood and Western Avenue.”
Flossmoor officials said there were obstacles in some roadways such as tree limbs and power lines, and that the intersection of Governors Highway and Flossmoor Road was closed due to flooding.
Orland Park Mayor Keith Pekau said the storm may have resulted in some tree damage but there was nothing major, and that he knew of 15 power outages affecting fewer than 200 customers in the village.
Pat Carr, Tinley Park’s director of emergency management and 911 communications, said there was no major damage in the village due to the storms.
Joseph Cirelli, assistant fire chief and deputy administrator for Mokena Fire Protection District, said firefighters saw an increase in calls following the storm, “mostly for wires and trees down.”
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A fence surrounding a home in the Catalina subdivision of Orland Park was damaged by Monday's storm. (Marty Nachel)
“There was no significant structural damage reported,” he said across the district, which serves all or portions of Frankfort, Homer Glen, Mokena and Orland Park.
Thomas Murray, the chief deputy director with Will County Emergency Management Agency, said while he did not want to minimize any property damage experienced across the region during the storm, officials were thankful the response largely consisted of things such as clearing roads blocked by downed trees. No major incidents were reported, he said.
"We've not been made aware of any specific, large-scale impact of this storm," Murray said.
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Jazmin Rangel, a spokesperson for ComEd, noted 580,000 customers were impacted by the storm across the power provider's service area.
“Our south region was the hardest hit, with 247,000 hit,” she said.
By 8 p.m., power had been restored for roughly 218,000 customers, Rangel said. ComEd reportedly had 336 crews active following the storm, with more contractors and calls for help from other regions.
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The storm, known as a derecho, moved from eastern Nebraska and across Iowa before crossing into Illinois then onto Indiana.
Just before 4 p.m., the National Weather Service reported winds reached 72 mph at Midway Airport and 62 mph at O’Hare International Airport.
The service reported that a wind gust clocking in at 92 mph was recorded near Dixon.
Mike Nolan and The AP contributed. Bill Jones is a freelance reporter.