Police shut down illegal warehouse party

Party over.

Nine guns were recovered, three people were arrested and more than a half dozen others were cited early Sunday morning when police officers broke up an illegal night club on the West Side.

The warehouse, unbeknownst to the owners, had been transformed into an elaborate lounge with $5 drinks, pulsating music, crowd control stanchions, velvet ropes, rugs and industrial spot lights beaming down on a party advertisement, authorities said today.

As patrons waited to join the 300 revelers packed in the building, Dwayne Troupe, 22, and Ambrosio Silva, 28, allegedly patted them down. Both men were wearing soft body armor and had handguns, police said.

Officers with the department's Mobile Strike Force also recovered a gun from 28-year-old Zenobia Mills when they searched the building, in the 4400 block of Fifth Avenue, police said.

All three Chicago residents were charged with felony weapons violations.

Others were cited performing as a disk jockey without a license and serving alcohol without a license.

Bernard Harrison, 26, of Oakbrook Terrace, allegedly organized the party and was cited for numerous violations, including operating a public place of amusement without a license.

The owners had leased the space for storage and an office and had no idea of the raucous activities inside, their attorney, George Hodges, said.

Police had been called to the scene at least once before for similar complaints, Hodges said.

“Whoever was allowed in there had no right to be there,” he said.

from the Trib

Milwaukee couple steals for fun

A doctor and his wife arrested for shoplifting at a Macy's store near Milwaukee told police they did it for the thrill. The doctor, who told officers he makes more than $150,000 a year, said his wife suggested they take what they wanted. So they took turns serving as a lookout while the other took items -- more than $1,500 worth -- from just about every department in the store, police say.

from the Sentinel Journal

Man punches meter maid for issuing ticket

A Chinatown restaurant owner allegedly hit a meter maid in the face after she issued him parking ticket outside his eatery Friday afternoon on the Near the South Side, police.

Tie Lee, 38, of the 3200 block of South Hamilton Avenue, was arrested at 1:25 p.m. Friday outside a restaurant at 2162 S. Archer Ave. shortly after he allegedly hit a parking enforcement employee. Lee was later charged with felony aggravated battery to a government employee, according to police.

from the Sun-Times

Car burglar wrote how-to guide

A suspect who was burglarizing a Jeep Cherokee and found with an apparently self-written “how to” guide for breaking into vehicles early Friday on the North Side has been charged, police said.

At 3:30 a.m. in the 5100 block of North Oakley Avenue, police on routine patrol saw and recognized Barringer apparently burglarizing a Jeep Cherokee parked on the street, according to Barker who was one of the officers who saw him.

Barker gave chase on foot when Barringer began running and apprehended him. Barringer was allegedly trying to steal a pair of gloves and what looked like a business folder or clipboard, according to the sergeant.

He was placed under arrest and one of the things police found as they were going through items he had on him was a “notebook or how-to guide on how to break into cars,’’ according to Barker who said it appeared he had written it himself.

Some of the “tips” he had written in the guide included, “Keep looking around for five seconds. Run through gangways. Be carfule [sic]. If you hear squealing brakes it may be a cop coming, so look behind you.’’ according to Barker.

from the Sun-Times

Striking teachers cancel classes

Officials from the Prairie Hills Elementary School District 144 which serves more than 3,000 students in the south suburbs have canceled classes after teachers voted to strike late Wednesday after they could not agree on salary issues, officials said.

In a statement issued on its Web site, officials from the Board of Education said classes and extracurricular activities have been canceled beginning Thursday morning and until further notice. Officials warned parents not to bring their children to school.

from the Trib

Ravenswood church vandalized

A Ravenswood church was damaged when a stained-glass window was broken, then a garden hose was put through it and turned on, flooding part of the building, Chicago police said Sunday.

The damage happened between about 4 p.m. Friday and 8 a.m. Saturday, when a worker at All Saints Episcopal Church, 4550 N. Hermitage Ave., arrived and found much of the sanctuary floor in about 4 inches of water, said Bonnie Perry, the church's rector.

Signs of the damage Sunday were hardly noticeable, Perry said, though much of the water seeped into the basement.

from the Trib

David Irving talk disrupted on NW side

Updated: A speech by Holocaust denier David Irving at the Edelweiss restaurant, 7650 W Irving Park, was disrupted and shut down by antifascists Monday night. Our rumors have it that 5-7 black-clad thugs stormed into the restaurant, throwing chairs and aggressively engaging the crowd of mostly elderly men. Irving was moved to safety, and some damage was done to the restaurant.

Several individuals were arrested shortly afterward. Everyone's outta jail with disorderly conduct charges.

Arson suspected in school fire

A fire that caused more than $100,000 damage at Naperville's Scott Elementary School is being investigated as an arson, police said Monday.

Cmdr. Mike Anders said investigators have interviewed several students and staff members at the school at 500 Warwick Drive.

He said the initial probe was handled by a joint team of police officers and firefighters, but police took over once it was determined a crime was involved.

Scott students and faculty had to be evacuated about 9:30 a.m. Friday after a fire began in the boys washroom and destroyed a toilet paper dispenser and stall partition.

No one was injured, but smoke spread throughout the building and caused extensive damage.

from the Daily Herald

Underground immigration ring busted

Ten people with Chicago connections have been indicted on federal charges of running a marriage fraud scheme that paid American citizens thousands of dollars to marry immigrants in an effort to skirt immigration laws, the U.S. attorney's office said today.

Federal authorities allege Maria Cruz, 49, and her co-defendants arranged up to 15 "sham marriages" in which non-U.S. citizens -- many of them Filipinos -- offered to pay Cruz $3,000 to arrange marriages with American citizens.

According to an indictment unsealed today, Cruz paid a fee for referrals to U.S. citizens willing to enter into the fake marriages. She allegedly promised them they would be paid about $3,000 up front for the marriage and $300 to $350 for each month until the non-citizen got citizenship.

The indictment alleges that between 2003 and 2009 Cruz would drive people to their purported weddings and take pictures before and after to make it appear that real ceremonies had taken place. She would also advise participants in the scam on how to make their marriages seem real to immigration officials, federal authorities allege.

from the Trib

Cop skims $600k from police association

A statewide police association will check its financial books after learning one of its board members -- a Chicago Police sergeant -- was charged with skimming $600,000 from the Chicago Police Sergeants' Association.

Sgt. John Pallohusky, a detective and president of the Chicago sergeants' association, also serves as financial secretary for the Springfield-based Police Benevolent & Protective Association of Illinois.

On Friday, Cook County prosecutors charged Pallohusky, 53, with stealing from the Chicago Police Sergeants' Association and spending the money on a home, an online stock brokerage, gambling trips, hotels and steak dinners.

from the Sun-Times

Man plants fake bombs downtown

A West Side man faces felony charges after he was arrested on suspicion of planting fake bombs near the headquarters of the Boeing Co. and One Prudential Plaza, police said.

Chicago police foot patrol officers arrested Roosevelt Billups, 42, in the 100 block of North State Street about 5 p.m. Wednesday, police said.

Someone who saw Billups in the area called police after recognizing him as a suspect in three incidents involving fake bombs, said Chicago Police News Affairs Officer Gabrielle Lesniak.

Billups is suspected of planting hoax bombs outside 100 N. Riverside Plaza -- which is the Boeing headquarters -- and One Prudential Plaza, a police source said.

from the Trib

Suspicious cans shut down courthouse garage

Authorities shut down the parking garage across the street from the Cook County Criminal Courts Building for about a half hour today after a law enforcement officer found two suspicious canisters attached to his vehicle.

The officer was leaving the garage at about 1:15 p.m. when he heard a rattling sound coming from his vehicle, according to Cook County Sheriff's spokesman Steve Patterson.

"The officer got out of his vehicle and found two rattling canisters adhered to his car," Patterson said.

The officer called for assistance. The investigation is being handled by members of the Chicago Police Bomb and Arson unit, Patterson said.

from the Trib

Twin Cities activists defy Iowa Grand Jury subpoena

The federal government's Green Scare campaign took another depressing turn Tuesday morning as a federal district judge in Iowa ordered the detainment of Twin Cities activists Scott DeMuth and Carrie Feldman at a contempt hearing. DeMuth and Feldman were subpoenaed to a grand jury in Davenport, Iowa, compelling them to testify regarding a animal rights-related vandalism incident at the University of Iowa. These are the first reports from Iowa:

Feldman and Scott spoke to the local press and 30 to 40 supporters at a rally beforehand in Davenport, then refused to testify. At the contempt hearing, the judge offered both immunity, but they still refused to talk, and were taken away. The judge believes they will remain in jail until they comply or the jury ends (likely in 11 months).

from Twin Cities IndyMedia

Cabrini Green anti-eviction blockade announced

We are kicking off the Chicago Anti-Eviction Campaing this Tuesday with an eviction blockade to stop Lenise Forrest and her family from being evicted from Cabrini Green for owing back rent. She had a payment plan under previous management but the new management has refused to recognize it and is trying to put her out on the street. She is appealing the eviction but the Sheriff is still scheduled to evict her Tuesday morning.

from Chicago IndyMedia

UIUC grad students on strike

University of Illinois graduate student instructors plan to continue striking Tuesday after an estimated "several hundred" classes were canceled Monday, organizers said.

Carrying umbrellas and strike signs, instructors picketed outside four major classroom buildings in the Urbana-Champaign campus while undergraduates worried about missing class time, the due dates for assignments and their grades if the strike continues.

from the Trib

Witnesses held in contempt still won't testify at murder trial

Three witnesses who refuse to testify in a gang-related murder trial will remain in jail until at least Dec. 7, when the judge presiding over the trial returns from vacation.

Raul Galarza, Jeffrey Pawlak and Carlos Roa all refused once again to testify Monday at the Cook County Courthouse in Maywood despite being granted immunity. Cook County Circuit Court Judge Thomas Tucker found they remained in contempt of court and sent them back to jail. If they persist, all three could face more than a year in prison.

from the Trib

Shoplifter slashes security guard

A shoplifter who allegedly tried to steal Theraflu cut a Walgreens security guard with a box cutter -- causing him to have to get 20 stitches Monday night in the Lawndale neighborhood on the West Side.

About 7 p.m. police responded to a battery at a Walgreens on the 3400 block of West Roosevelt Road, according to an Ogden District police lieutenant.

Officers arrived and found a security guard who was outside the store holding his right hand, which was dripping with blood, according to the lieutenant.

The guard told police that a 44-year-old man had allegedly just cut him with a box-cutter during an argument that ensued when the man was trying to leave the store without paying for two packages of Theraflu, the lieutenant said.

Employees witnessed the 44-year-old man placing two packages of the medicine in his coat pocket. As he walked past cash registers without paying, the guard tried to question him outside.

The arrestee allegedly told the guard, “Get the fuck away from me,’’ and he slashed the guard with a box cutter, he said.

from the Sun-Times

Vandals flatten tires on 32 school buses

Service was delayed on a number of north suburban Zion-Benton Township High School bus routes Monday morning because of flat tires on 32 buses.

School authorities got vendors to help re-inflate the tires. One or more tires were deflated on each of the buses.

from the Sun-Times

BofA windows smashed

Broken Windows

This week, three large windows were smashed on a Bank of America branch in Chicago. You can probably guess why. Spooky shit like this has been happening more and more often. If you're not creeped out yet, just you wait. See you soon!

In solidarity with whoever wants it,

The Monster Squad, Cell of Shattered Glass

from Chicago IndyMedia

Veteran cop steals from sick cop

In an unusual theft case, a veteran Chicago police officer has been charged with stealing $800 -- from another officer who was undergoing treatment for cancer, authorities said Thursday.

Police and prosecutors said Officer George Porter had agreed to buy groceries for the ill co-worker with her bank card but instead made four $200 withdrawals from ATMs over the next three days and pocketed the cash.

from the Trib

Bad cop really bad

A Dolton cop caught on camera allegedly breaking a 15-year-old special needs student's nose for failing to tuck in his shirt has a troubling history that includes killing a man in a case of disputed self-defense and is now in an Indiana jail on an unrelated rape charge.

Christopher Lloyd, 38, was identified Thursday by his father Charles Lloyd and Dolton Mayor Ronnie Lewis as the officer who in May was recorded by a school security camera scuffling with 15-year-old, 140-pound Marshawn Pitts at the Academy for Learning in Dolton.

An attorney hired by Pitts' parents released the video this week, calling the incident an "unprovoked attack" on a vulnerable child. The video, which has no audio, appears to show the officer slamming Pitts against a locker, wrestling him to the ground and pinning him.

But speaking Thursday, Charles Lloyd said he had seen the video and discussed the incident with his son, who he said was "just trying to do his job as a police officer and is completely innocent."

from the Trib

Bomb scare causes theater evacuation

Chicago police evacuated the Bank of America Theatre downtown tonight, interrupting a popular musical after two suspicious boxes with notes were discovered in the alley behind the theater.

Police were alerted at about 8:58 p.m. when two boxes -- each with a note -- were found behind the theater at 18 W. Monroe St.

One letter read: "This is not a bomb" while the second note read: "This is not going to end good," Chicago Police Lt. Charles Flynn said.

Authorities immediately evacuated the theater, which was showcasing the Tony-winning musical "Jersey Boys."

Police were treating the incident as a bomb scare and closed off several surrounding streets as police Bomb and Arson detectives and fire officials secured the scene, Flynn said.

from the Trib

Video disputes police arrest claim

The attorney representing nearly two dozen people who have filed federal civil lawsuits against a Chicago police officer they allege has made false DUI arrests and has harassed gays and people with disabilities revealed a video today that disputes at least one of the officer's police reports.

The video, which was mounted in Chicago police officer Richard Fiorito's squad car, shows Michael Vaughn, who was pulled over for suspicion of drunken driving in June, walking in a straight line with his arms at his side as part of a field sobriety test. But Fiorito said in a police report that Vaughn couldn't keep his balance and raised his arms more than six inches.

from the Trib

Retribution Against Daily Life; Bank Attacked in Chicago

...seven windows were broken at Chicago Community Bank on the near south side. One for each of those arrested, and one more for the bid.

On Tuesday night, the state arrested six individuals and charged them with felonies in connection to anti-Olympic hooliganism. This persecution is completely unacceptable.

To extend revolutionary solidarity, seven windows were broken at Chicago Community Bank on the near south side. One for each of those arrested, and one more for the bid. In the joyful wake of this criminal-becoming, three windows were done away with on an unmarked police cruiser. This was done because, well-- You know.

While this was done in the dead of night this past evening, in the future there will be opportunities for more inclusive forms of violence. Hopefully this gesture resonates with others who refuse containment and the misery of capitalist hell.

- No Games Chicago Cell of Revolutionary Conspiracy

from Chicago IndyMedia

50 vehicles vandalized

At least 50 vehicles parked at CFC International, 500 State St., were damaged with spray paint on Sept. 3.

from the Sun-Times

Orland BMWs attacked

Two BMWs had their rear passenger windows broken between Sept. 12 and Sept. 14 at BMW of Orland, 8470 W. 159th St.,

from the Sun-Times

Chicago Olympics banner vandalized

Six people were arrested this evening after they yanked an Olympic banner from the Daley Center's Picasso statue and tossed it into the nearby "eternal" flame, police said.

The suspects, arrested just after 7:30 p.m., weren't believed to be a part of an anti-Olympics bid rally that took place in front of City Hall this afternoon, police said.

After gathering in the Daley Center, the six vandals pulled down a banner -- valued at thousands of dollars -- from the statue and damaged a portion of it in the flame dedicated to veterans, Chicago Police Lt. Charles Flynn said.

The alleged vandals then got into a physical confrontation with responding police officers, who took all six into custody. Authorities were meeting with prosecutors seeking felony charges including damage to property and possibly aggravated battery to a police officer, Flynn said.

from the Trib

video here

Glenn Beck was right

A year of gesture. Our memory of the election is chaos in St. Paul. For Christmas and New Years, we were shared gifts and kisses with Greece. Iranians told us what they thought of their lives. We were attracted to the Parisians too, as always: we're not nostalgic for 68, but we figure they've been at it for a while so they know what they are doing.

Everyone agrees, it's about to explode

An off-duty Chicago firefighter has been charged with assaulting a police officer Sunday evening near Soldier Field after the Bears game, officials said today.

Scott Holland, 42, of the 2800 block of South Wood Street, was charged with one count of aggravated battery to a peace officer and one count of resisting arrest, police said.

At Holland's bond hearing this morning, Assistant State's Atty. Erin Antonietti said the unformed officer was riding a bicycle after the Bears game and approached Holland from behind and off to one side.

Holland, for unexplained reasons, shoved the officer into a fence and punched him in the face, she said.

Holland's bail was set at $65,000.

Holland was arrested in the 1800 block of South Calumet Avenue shortly after the Bears game ended. Police earlier had said the attack occurred on a pedestrian bridge near Soldier Field.

-from the Sun-Times

Taking a page from Twin Cities police, anarchists make pre-emptive G20 strike?

Sources indicate nails and screws were forced into the tires on at least a dozen marked and unmarked police cars as well as a number of private cars.

Pittsburgh Police sources say at least a dozen police cars and a number of private cars were vandalized.

Sources also confirm police investigators have substantial information to believe the crime was committed by anarchists in town for the G-20 Summit.

Police detectives took photographs and looked for evidence in the parking lot of police headquarters Thursday afternoon.

The damage was done to the cars' tires.

Sources indicate nails and screws were forced into the tires on at least a dozen marked and unmarked police cars as well as a number of private cars.

Sources indicate it is believed a number of suspected anarchists came to police headquarters late Wednesday night and damaged as many cars as possible.

Police indicate the tires cannot be plugged and must be replaced because the cars have to operate at high speeds.

Damage estimates at this time are running in the thousands of dollars.

Sources indicate the suspected anarchists came to prove to police they can do damage whenever and wherever they want.

There was no official comment regarding the incident.

KDKA's Marty Griffin has been told the mayor, police chief and public safety director are outraged by the brazen nature of the attack.

There will also be increased security in the parking lot starting Thursday night.

video from YouTube

Chicago pig attacks bus driver

An off-duty Chicago police officer allegedly beat a CTA bus driver so badly Saturday night that the driver was left unconscious, a representative from the driver's union said Wednesday.

"There is a belief on our part that [the driver] was unconscious for a while," said Darrell Jefferson, president of Amalgamated Transit Union 241.

Jefferson said two union representatives who have seen CTA video surveillance of the alleged incident remarked that the driver doesn't move after he's punched, and "he's not feeling for his glasses -- he's not doing anything," said Jefferson, who had not seen the video surveillance Wednesday.

The incident is being investigated by Area 3 detectives and the Independent Police Review Authority. At the time of the incident, the officer already had been relieved of his police powers for an "unrelated matter," a Chicago Police spokesman said, without elaborating.

The alleged beating occurred Saturday night in the Loop. At the time, the officer was riding a bicycle, and then allegedly boarded the bus, accusing the driver of trying to cut him off.

Jefferson said video surveillance shows the police officer repeatedly punching the driver, leaving the bus, and then returning to punch the driver some more.

from the Sun-Times

Chicagoans ignoring laws, citations, fines

At a time when Mayor Daley has laid off 431 city employees and forced those still on the payroll to take unpaid days off, $61.3 million has slipped through the city's fingers in the last 19 months alone.

That's because an alarming number of people cited for violating city laws still are blowing off their administrative hearings or ignoring the judgments that hearing officers render.

from the Sun-Times

An evening with Liam Sionnach

What's better than the late '90s hardcore scene and early '00s anti-globalization activists traveling through your town and eating all the garbage at your so-called collective house?

IEF insurrectuals making it fucking rain.

“Social Justice or Social War?”
Friday | September 11 | 7pm
UWM Union | room 280

from the Institute for Experimental Freedom

String of trash bin fires hits Northwest Side

At least six fires were started overnight in trash receptacles in the Logan Square and Humboldt Park neighborhoods--with some of them spreading to nearby garages--and authorities are investigating to see if they are connected.

"The fires were quickly put out, but not without some damage," said Chicago Fire Department spokesman Kevin MacGregor. "Some [garages] were more than scorched."

The first of the fires was reported shortly after midnight and alarms continued to come in for the next two hours or so.

A witness said a fire on the 1900 block of North Fairfield Avenue had severely damaged a garage and damaged two cars inside. "The windshields were melted, the walls were burned through," he said.

Another fire on the 3300 block of West Wrightwood Avenue burned through the wall and roof of a garage housing a vehicle. The windshield and tail lights of the car were melted, according to the fire department. In addition, power lines in the alley caught fire and were lying on the ground. There were no reports of a power outage.

from the Trib

Downtown ATM stolen

Someone made off with an entire automated teller machine in Millennium Park, police said Friday morning.

Police were notified at 7 a.m. that the ATM was taken from 11 N. Michigan Ave. in Millennium Park near the Bean, according to a Central District police lieutenant.

Police were reviewing video surveillance of the area to see who last used the machine but it appeared someone was able to get into the vestibule of the building, that is locked but accessible by swiping an ATM card, according to the lieutenant.

“They took the entire machine,’’ the lieutenant said.

No alarms went off at the building, which was closed at the time and the lieutenant said money could be retrieved from machine, though it is difficult.

No windows were broken on the building and as of 10:15 a.m. no one was arrested.

from the Sun-Times

Teens tag Chicago police memorial

Four teenagers are in custody after they spray-painted graffiti on a memorial near Soldier Field honoring slain Chicago police officers and their families, authorities said.

Police arrested three 17-year-olds -- two females and one male -- and a 15-year-old boy, said Chicago News Affairs Officer Michael Fitzpatrick.

The teens were arrested at about 3:05 a.m. after police on routine patrol saw them running from the Gold Star Families Memorial and Park, Fitzpatrick said.

The teens used red spray paint to write words on the north end of the memorial in the 1400 block of South Museum Campus Drive, just east of Soldier Field on Chicago Park District land, police said. The tagging was neither gang-related nor anti-police, Fitzpatrick said.

A wall in a nearby tunnel had also been spray-painted by the teens, Fitzpatrick said.

from the Trib

Denver Democratic HQ smashed up; anarchist arrested

Ariel Attack, Denver based anarchist and Bash Back member, was arrested on Monday night. She is facing felony charges for allegedly participating in property destruction of the Denver Democratic Party Headquarters.

She is being charged with Felony Criminal Mischief. She has court tomorrow (Wednesday Aug. 26th) at 10 am in courtroom 12T. Please come and support her in court tomorrow if you can!

Denver Anarchist Black Cross is asking for folks to donate to her bail and legal defense and will make details public as soon as possible and as soon as it makes sense to.

If you can help, please contact us at denverabc@rocketmail.com

here

Update: Ariel is out of jail.

Teamsters local 743 on strike

Workers at SK Hand Tools in Chicago (3535 W. 47th St.) and McCook (9500 W. 55th St.) voted unanimously to STRIKE as of Tuesday, August 25, 2009 due to the company’s unilateral
withdrawal of the workers’ health insurance without notice!

Strike support will be needed on a 24/7 basis at both locations – please contact the Teamsters Local 743 union hall at (773) 254-7460 for more information.

more at Teamsters 743

Bank robbed in yuppie-hipster central

FBI agents remain on the scene of a bank robbery that happened Friday morning at a Bank of America branch in the Wicker Park neighborhood.

No one was hurt but at 10:30 a.m. when a suspect entered a Bank of America branch at 1585 N. Milwaukee Ave., displayed a weapon, took an unidentified amount of money and fled, according to police News Affairs Officer JoAnn Taylor.

There was no dye pack, according to the officer.

FBI spokesman Ross Rice said at 1 p.m. agents remained on the scene interviewing witnesses. He confirmed there were no injuries and no arrests made.

from the Sun-Times

Suspicious package found outside Oprah's Harpo TV studio

A suspicious package did not blow up Friday morning after is was found outside Harpo Productions Inc. on the Near West Side, police said.

The item did not explode and no one was hurt, according to a Monroe District police officer at 8:52 a.m., who said police were clearing the scene.

About 6:20 a.m., a security guard found a dark-colored backpack with wires hanging out of it in a flowerbed outside the studio at 110 N. Carpenter St., according to police News Affairs Officer JoAnn Taylor, who was citing preliminary information.

The district officer did not immediately know whether the backpack had the capacity to explode and police said studio was not evacuated.

The police Bomb & Arson Unit was sent to the scene but a detective did not have further information.

The studio is where Oprah Winfrey records her television show.

from Sun-Times

Street signs honor slain officers

Almost 39 years to the day after two Chicago police officers were gunned down while on foot patrol in the Cabrini-Green housing project, the street outside the nearby police station was dedicated to their memory Saturday.

Street signs bearing the names of Anthony Rizzato and James Severin were unveiled at a ceremony attended by Police Supt. Jody Weis, members of their families and a crowd of former colleagues.

Mary Schlaak, Severin's niece, told attendees outside the station at 1160 N. Larrabee Ave. that the memorial will make it clear the deaths still matter.

"Thank you for understanding that 39 years later this loss of two 18th District cops who died in the line of duty, it's still meaningful and still relevant," Schlaak said.

Rizzato and Severin were on patrol near Seward Park on July 17, 1970, as part of the department's "Walk & Talk" program they volunteered for, when shots rang out from a nearby high rise, fatally injuring both.

Two men were sentenced to 199 years for the murders and are still in prison.

Weis said the two officers were heroes and that Chicagopolice remain targets now.

"It's not that different today," Weis said at the ceremony. "People try to murder our officers. I don't know what that says about society, but it says our mission isn't done."

A memorial to Rizzato and Severin stood on the spot where they were shot, but had to be moved recently because of a construction project, according to Near North District Cmdr. Steve Georgas.

Retired Chicago Police tactical Sgt. Ed Wodnicki remembered the two as extremely brave officers at a time the Near North District was a dangerous place.

"It was a combat zone, and they were combatants," Wodnicki said.

from the Trib

Two cops shot in leg while executing warrant

Two narcotics officers were shot, both in the leg, while executing a search warrant on the Far South Side early this afternoon, officials said.

The officers were shot by someone inside the home near East 112th Place and South State Street where they were serving the warrant, a source said, adding that both officers are doing fine.

They were taken in good condition to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, according to Chicago Fire Department spokesman Larry Langford.

No other details were immediately available.

from the Trib

Absenteeism and class struggle in Streets & San

"The one-laborer truck was born out of necessity. It was something we developed because I can't afford to budget for 30 percent relief. If we did, it would cost the city $19 million to have two men on every truck to cover that relief."

An interesting article from the Sun-Times highlights how everyday absenteeism cuts into workplace productivity and management planning; in a sense -- class struggle pushing forward capitalist innovation.

On the one hand, Laborers negotiated disciplinary amnesty for its workers, which is a really interesting concession. On the other, it looks like they will be complicit in enforcing new workplace rules:

At a news conference with Mayor Daley called to warn of 431 layoffs affecting two hold-out unions, Phillips said he and Byrne had agreed to work together to implement "some new work rules that I'm very excited" about.

One can only hope the workers will be as excited and respond in kind.

City booting more cars

When Chicago's City Council decided to lower the threshold for slapping a metal boot on cars, you had to know there would be an influx of cash going into city coffers. After all, that was half the point.

An investigation by the Sun-Times shows the program has been a huge success, as far as city accountants are concerned. Since April 22, the city has mailed a whopping 183,293 seizure notices and booted nearly 3,500 cars.

Good news for the city; bad news for you.

Now, to get the boot, all you need are two unpaid tickets older than a year to get the boot. The city has even put $1.5 million behind new technology to bolster their booting abilities. They now have 26 vans equipped with electronically controlled cameras that can check 900 license plates per hour, searching for bootable cars.

If your car is booted, you'll have to pay all unpaid parking violations and fines to get it removed. And if your car also gets towed, you'll also have to pay those pesky towing and storage fees.

A Revenue Department spokesman said they're out to "maximize collections" for the city.

from NBC

I'm unsure of the success rate, this pamphlet claims to have information on how to beat the boot. In particular, this suggestion sounds enticing:

That means, of course, that an anarchist thug with a penchant for trouble-making (or a wily hustler with an eye for a quick profit) could easily dismantle and remove the boot from some poor innocent scofflaw's illegally parked car, take the thing home, bust the lock off and pay a less-than-scrupulous locksmith to make up a new key -- a key that would instantly unlock every boot in the city.

Prison escapees still at large

Authorities believe the three inmates escaped Sunday from the maximum-security prison in Michigan City through underground tunnels and pipe chases.

Grand Beach Police Chief Dan Schroeder said authorities were maintaining a heavy presence in the town because they don't know if the escapees still are in the area.

"This is a large area and there's all different kinds of places they can hide," Schroeder said about the heavily wooded community.

The escapees could conceal themselves in the woods, in the tops of trees, in a ditch or a creek, behind homes or on the beach, Schroeder said. "Hiding (in Grand Beach) is really not that much of a trick actually," Schroeder said.

Many residents of Grand Beach -- including those who commute from Chicago for weekend and summer stays -- said they weren't scared. They continued to keep their doors unlocked and taking walks up and down the quiet streets. Many residents use golf carts to get around.

from the Trib

Suburban teens go on vandalism spree

Mount Prospect police today announced the arrest of one person in a string of vandalism incidents on the north side of the village, and said more arrests are possible.

Sean M. Dudczak, 22, of the 1100 block of Boxwood Drive in Mount Prospect was arrested Thursday and charged with four counts of criminal defacement to property, police said.

Those four charges involve graffiti to a Jewel grocery store, Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant, AMC movie theater and a Steak and Shake restaurant, according to a news release from the Mount Prospect Police Department..

The department has been investigating dozens of criminal defacement to property cases over the past month, mainly on the north side of the village, and anticipates making further arrests, Police Chief John Dahlberg said in the release.

Dudczak faces an Aug. 3 court date in Rolling Meadows court on the four charges, which are Class A misdemeanors, police said.

from the Trib

Damn

Tenant charged with killing landlord and burning his body

A Chicago man accused of using garden tools, an ice scraper, a BB gun and a pipe to allegedly beat his landlord to death before setting his body on fire, is eligible for the death penalty, Cook County prosecutors said Sunday.

Judge Maria Kuriakos Ciesil denied bail for Martin Vega, 27, who was renting an apartment from William Hallin, 67, in the two-story home Hallin owned in the 5000 block of South Talman Avenue in Chicago's Gage Park community. Vega is charged with first-degree murder.

Around 6 p.m. Friday, Hallin went to collect rent, and Vega didn't pay up, Assistant Cook County State's Atty. Emily Stevens said. Hallin then noticed Vega had a dog in his apartment, which was not allowed, officials said. Hallin told Vega he would have to move out, and a bloody fight ensued, officials said.

Vega allegedly pushed Hallin down stairs then delivered blows to Hallin's head and body with various weapons and tools, Stevens said in court. Vega allegedly took Hallin to the basement, where Hallin began to cry and beg for his life, Stevens said. To shut Hallin up, Vega put a shirt in his landlord's mouth, then beat his skull with a lamp, Stevens said.

Vega then choked Hallin with a rope and put him on a rug in the basement, Stevens said. He threw gasoline from a lawn mower on the rug and on Hallin, then lit the rug on fire, Stevens alleged.

from the Trib

Four more cars torched on North Side

Four cars were torched in a Lincoln Square parking lot early this morning, Chicago police said. It was the second time multiple cars were set on fire in the city over the last eight days, but the two incidents did not appear related.

At 3:40 a.m., a woman heard her dogs barking and looked outside to see four vehicles aflame across her rear alley in a parking lot in the 5600 block of North Western Avenue, Chicago Police News Affairs Officer Laura Kubiak said.

There were no known injuries and the fires were contained to the four vehicles, which included a Jeep, a Pontiac Grand Am, a Ford Contour and a Buick. It was not known if there were other cars in the parking lot at the time, Kubiak said.

The Chicago Police Bomb and Arson Unit is investigating.

from the Trib

Police from 68 DNC protests to hold reunion

eThe reunion, the policeman's son said, was simply for Chicago cops who worked together some 40 years ago -- something he wanted to do for his father and his father's friends.

But the span of four decades has not been long enough to eradicate the searing memories of the 1968 demonstrations during the Democratic National Convention. And when "Chicago Riot Cops Reunion" organizers wrote on their Web site that "the only thing that stood between Marxist street thugs and public order was a thin blue line of dedicated, tough Chicago police officers," the fight was back on.

"Are these guys nuts?" asked Marilyn Katz, a protester at the 1968 convention in Chicago and now a president of a communications firm here. "Do they think it's really good PR for them?"

Chicago Copwatch, an activist organization that tries to document police misconduct, swiftly organized a counter-rally at Ashland Avenue and Lake Street at 6 p.m. Friday, the same night as the reunion. They plan to a march to the Fraternal Order of Police lodge, where the reunion is being held.

from the Trib
see also Copwatch

Police officer robs benevolent association

A 10-year Cicero police veteran was charged with theft today after allegedly stealing more than $70,000 from the department's benevolent association, Cook County State's Attorney Anita Alvarez said.

Gerald Bossolono, 46, was arrested as he showed up for work today by investigators with the Cook County State's Attorney's office, Alvarez said in a press release. He served as treasurer of the Cicero police benevolent association.

from the Trib

17 vehicles set on fire in Ukrainian Village, Humboldt Park

Police and firefighters this morning found at least 17 vehicles set on fire in three locations on the West and Northwest Sides.

Seven vehicles were found in the 1600 block of North Keeler Avenue, an additional six were found in the 1600 block of North Spaulding Avenue, three others were found in the 1800 block of West Erie Street, and one found in the 3200 block of West Wabansia Avenue, police said.

The vehicles on Erie were found around 5:30 a.m., said Chicago Fire Department spokesman Quention Curtis; the others were found about an hour later.

No information was immediately available on suspects or motive. The fire department and police bomb and arson unit are investigating.

from the Trib

solidarity?

a total destroy to the protesters in Iran!

video here from CNN (trigger warning - street violence; yeah, fuck the corporate media, whatever)

Blow Up Mathias

Blow Up Mathias is the first issue in Chicago's new Insurrectionary Anarchist periodical. We strive to create theory for actions and actions from theory

.

from ZineLibrary.info

CPDk

I like to keep up with an interesting blog called Second City Cop. It's humanizing, and you can also hear pigs wish for the days when they could wantonly beat individuals on the street.

In the area of 76th and Exchange, the following graffiti was spotted by a reader of ours and he felt it necessary to bring it to everyone's attention. We agree:

The e-mail also stated this has been popping up with alarming frequency around the north end of 004 where there was a recent "Shots Fired at the Police" incident. Additionally, an individual was stopped wearing a t-shirt with the "CPDK" on it. The explanation given? It stood for "Corrupt Police Department Killer" but we highly doubt that. No word on what happened to the individual wearing the shirt, or the shirt itself following discovery. We know what would have happened in the old days.

We miss the old days.

-courtesy Second City Cop

To begin again from a slightly different position

Marx’s concept of ‘species being’ is for some a way of re-connecting with fertile currents in the communist left. Howard Slater explores Frére Dupont’s recent book Species Being and Other Stories as a vehicle of exodus from left orthodoxies.

from Mute

Chicago police freed of spying limits

A federal judge has dissolved decades-old legal restrictions placed on Chicago police because of their infamous Red Squad.

U.S. District Court Judge Joan Gotschall voided the consent decrees today in response to a joint motion from Mayor Richard Daley's administration and the American Civil Liberties Union.

The city agreed to the decrees, which limited the police's ability to gather intelligence, to resolve a class-action lawsuit in 1982.

The restrictions came in response to the Red Squad that spied on political activists in the 1960s and 1970s. In 2001, the courts eased the rules, arguing that the decrees made it difficult for police to combat terrorist groups.

from the Trib

50 parking meters vandalized on North Side

About 50 coin-fed parking meters were vandalized today in the three adjacent North Side neighborhoods of Andersonville, Edgewater and Uptown, according to Chicago police.

The coin slots were obstructed with an adhesive thought to be glue or putty, Police News Affairs Officer Robert Perez said. The putty is removable "if they have something to scrape it with," Perez said.

The meters have also been sprayed with silver paint. Officials are on the scene.

Police said the meters are in the 5100 block of North Clark Street, the 5500 block of North Sheridan Road, the 1000 block of West Argyle Street, the 4900 block of North Winthrop Avenue and the 4900 block of North Kenmore Avenue.

Since the city leased the parking meters to a private company earlier this year, they have been the target of controversy, with complaints of price increases, computer glitches that made some pay boxes inoperable, non-working and mismarked meters.

It was not immediately known how long it would take to affect repairs or if police would refrain from writing tickets at the damaged meters.

from the Trib

Evanston targets alley scavengers

As barbecue grills, bikes and an occasional lawn mower disappear from alleys in Evanston, officials are studying how to regulate "junk metal pirates."

The scavengers often drive beater pickups and usually target discarded appliances and other castoffs. But some are grabbing items not meant to be carted away, said Suzette Eggleston, superintendent of streets and sanitation.

There's another problem besides the pilfering. The city loses money when these rogue haulers drive off with old washing machines, furniture and other large pieces left in alleys, she said.

Homeowners are charged a pickup fee that starts at $25 and is tacked on to water bills. Last year, these collections generated $89,000, money the community wants to keep, Eggleston said.

Given the recent thefts and lost revenue, Evanston is studying how to regulate the scavengers, possibly through a licensing arrangement.

"We want to establish some controls over them," Eggleston said.

from the Trib

Police Brutality at Bash Back! Convergence

Just hours ago [the night of Saturday, May 30], a bunch of radical queers took to the streets in Boystown Chicago, singing chants and dancing to music being blasted through a boombox. Minutes after we started marching, cops showed up. We proceeded to march and wait for them to tell us to get out of the street. But they didn't. Instead they ran a police car into the back of the march, running over one person. Then they proceeded to run out of the cop cars with their weapons raised high and chase down whomever they could. Randomly picking some people out of the crowd, they beat them continuously, dragging them through the streets, pushing people down, etc, yelling faggots as they hit them.

from Rusty's Blog, more to come as available

Chicago cop killed

On Monday, just after midnight, Valadez and his partner responded to a call of shots fired in the 6000 block of South Hermitage Avenue, authorities said. Two rival gangs were shooting at each other, one of the sources said, but when Valadez and his partner arrived, the gunfire had ceased.

They got out of their vehicle to search a nearby lot for weapons and to interview an individual walking nearby, the source said. Then a car pulled up with alleged gang members inside. Someone fired at the officers, who were in plainclothes, striking Valadez in the head and leg, the source said..

from the Trib

Bank robbers caught after daring chase

A Calumet City police officer was shot during a nearly three-hour police pursuit of three suspected bank robbers after the men crashed their vehicle on the Bishop Ford Freeway during a police chase and fled the scene.

The incident also sparked a lockdown of Carver Military Academy, 13100 S. Doty Ave. from 2:25 p.m. until about 5:45 p.m. as a precaution to students as authorities searched for the suspects.

As of 5:45 p.m., all three men were in police custody, according to Calumet City police Chief Edward Gilmore.

The incident began after the three alleged suspects robbed the Citibank at the River Oaks Mall in Calumet City at gunpoint about 2:15 p.m., according to Illinois State Police Sgt. Juan Valenzuela, who said it appeared the suspects involved in the robbery were in pursuit by Calumet City police when their vehicle crashed on the Bishop Ford near 130th Street near the Beaubien Woods Forest Preserve.

As the police chase ensued, the men blew a tire on their car and attempted to flee, according to Gilmore. At about 131st Street and the Bishop Ford, the men abandoned their car and attempted to flee.

The men fired shots at police and an officer was shot in the leg. The police officer was taken to Advocate Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn, authorities said. The officer suffered a through-and-through gunshot wound to the leg and was said to be in "stable" condition Tuesday evening, Gilmore said.

One of the suspects was shot by police while fleeing the scene. The man ran into the woods along with another suspect behind the Carver Military School but surrendered to police and emerged from the woods about 3:35 p.m. near 135th Street and the Beaubian Woods Forest Preserve, Gilmore said.

The man had a gunshot wound to the arm and was taken by Chicago Fire Dept. personnel to Roseland Community Hospital in "stable" condition, Fire Media Affairs spokesman Will Knight said.

more at Sun-Times

Man smashes Mag Mile windows

A 61-year-old Near North Side man has been charged for allegedly breaking the window of a Magnificent Mile business and throwing a table through a Gold Coast restaurant window Tuesday night.

Robert Grilly, 61, of the 400 block of East Ohio Street, was charged with two counts of misdemeanor criminal damage to property, police News Affairs Officer Laura Kubiak said.

Police responded at 11:30 p.m. to a report of a man who broke the window at the Apple Store at 679 N. Michigan Ave., according to Kubiak.

After that Grilly also allegedly threw a table through a window at Rosebud restaurant at 720 N. Rush St., Kubiak said.

from the Sun-Times

ADF Suing Bash Back! and Jesse Does

The work of devoted Bash Back!ers and allies determined that this morning’s hysteria is the result of the Alliance Defense Fund, a notorious anti-womyn, anti-queer, racist organization. The ADF decided to sue Bash Back!, Bash Back! Lansing and individuals because the authorities would not file a single criminal complaint regarding an action at the Mount Hope Church in Lansing last fall. But that’s not all! Those pesky evange-fascists are trying to identify and out up to 20 other people involved with Bash Back! in the hopes that criminal charges will be placed against them. Fourteen people and 1-20 Jesse “John” Does are named on the complaint.

from Bash Back News

Alleged Bash Back!ers Being Served With SubpoenaThroughout Midwest Subpoenas

update: initial reports were sketchy, but these are actually civil suits being delivered.

At least 23 people associated with Bash Back! are named in a subpoena that has been served to people in Milwaukee and Lansing. As of right now we believe Feds are trying to serve queermos in Chicago and other Midwestern Cities. Agents have been showing up at the homes of friends and family of Bash Back! members. BB! News is under the impression that this has something to do with the BB! Consulta in Lansing, Michigan last fall. When we know more we will let y'all know.

Remember we are members of a loving, tight nit community. While we have our differences we also have our friend’s backs. Don’t let them scare you. Loose Lips Imprison Queers.

With Love, Solidarity, and Rage,

from Bash Back! News

Finding Our Roots: Notes on an Impossible Meeting

“Ultra-Platypus is here to embrace the degeneration.”

A few friends met in Chicago this weekend to attend a workshop titled: “The Left is Dead”: “Ultra-Cutronism” and the “Anarcho-Autonomous” Milieu

The intended discussion (”Ultra-Platypus has been trying to figure out what this anarcho-autonomous milieu is”) was not to be had, for the Platypii caught wind of their own flatulence, though for once the stench was too hefty for them as they saw the modified “Ultra” attached and came running. The Platypii showed up in two large groups, one in the back left corner of 6 or 12 people (they all sat close and huddled together, but as more than half the room was immensely boring I wasn’t sure who was simulacra of leftist Platypii or not) and one in the front right corner of 3 others (they came in late). Throwing eye and hand gestures from back corner to front right corner of the room, whispering amongst their small circles, all to try to make the most ideological correct response at the oedipal moment when the name of the father (Platypus or Cutrone) is disgraced.

And disgraced it was, as the presentation, to the chagrin of anyone with a serious intent to revive the corpse of the left, was utterly absurd, hilarious, and a well-performed satire. As the slideshow of riot porn, naked boys, and S&M photos were rolling, the presentation switched from discussing the Tarnac 9, to violent denunciations of the leftists we still are (”We’re meager and pathetic.”), the three point program and strategy (see above), and a general silence and defiance from the presenter who knew to not engage with the Platypii on their own loopy ideological circular dialogue for any reason whatsoever.

Some snippets of words spoken by the presenter: “Demand for total social revolution falls flat…My individual actions do nothing…Our greatest hindrance to experimentation is the left…” and “What to do with your friend networks?…abnormality… Exert power. Be strategic…Build a war-machine…Attack the Left.”

Coining a non-existent splinter group only to see the Platypii show up was partly expected, it was their big day to show how smart they were! Well, to be honest, we actually knew they were coming from the stupid listserv discussions they were having. The Platypii showed up, went on a power trip, made everyone a little too tense, asked for a critique, and were answered by the presenter in a show of eloquence: “No, I do not give a fuck about Platypus."

excerpted from Principia Dialectica

Des Plaines: Workers threaten sit-in at Harmax factory

Hartmarx Corp. garment workers voted on Monday morning to stage a sit-in at a Des Plaines factory if a new owner tries to shut it down.

The plant, where suit jackets are made, halted production for about 15 minutes Monday morning so workers could vote on union leaders' recommendation to be prepared to stage a sit-in to save their jobs, said Ruby Sims, president of Local 39C of Workers United, which is affiliated with the Service Employees International Union.

The workers voted in favor of a sit-in by show of hands, Sims said. During a sit-in, workers refuse to leave the factory.

Workers at Republic Windows and Doors drew national attention to their cause in December when they staged a six-day sit in after their Chicago factory shut down abruptly. The workers won back severance pay and health-care benefits. And when the factory reopened this year under new ownership, some workers returned to their jobs.

Chicago-based Hartmarx filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in January and is in talks to be sold. The apparel maker employs about 3,000 unionized workers including 600 at the Des Plaines factory.

from the Trib

UWM Teaching Assistant Arrested in East Side Vandalism

Police arrested a University of Wisconsin Milwaukee graduate student and teaching assistant on Monday after he turned himself in.

What police want to know: is he part of group of 20-to-30 anarchists intent on committing violence?

The vandalism was extensive and expensive for east side businesses. Windows were smashed late Friday night by an apparent anarchist group wearing black ninja costumes.

They did more than $25,000 in damage at five businesses near Prospect and North.

Alert eyewitnesses saw several people leave in a car that lead police to an east side home.

It's where the UW-Milwaukee teaching assistant lives.

He wasn't interested in talking to us about his arrest. But police searched his home and found black clothing including hats and gloves, a sling shot and some material on anarchism.

Police are now searching his computer.

The suspect's lawyer Robin Shellow said, "They have found nothing that distinguished him from tens of thousands of university and college students across the country."

So far, police have only one suspect but they are looking for as many as 20 or more. Are they students? Where they recruited? Is there an anarchist movement on campus? Those are questions police are trying to answer.

UWM student Nick Adams doesn't think there's an anarchist movement on campus but he says if the allegations are true against the teaching assistant it will another black eye for the campus.

"It doesn't make anyone look good at all," said Adams, "We already have enough problems as it is."

The district attorney is still reviewing the case - charges could come Thursday.

from TMJ

One-upping the anarchist ATM smashers

Chicago police are searching for a driver who slammed a pickup truck into a South Side convenience store and stole an automated teller machine inside.

Officials say the truck smashed into the store's door and front window early Tuesday. Store owner Chan Park said he doesn't know how much money was inside the ATM that was taken.

The store, a Lucky Mart at 2900 W. 87th St., was closed and no one was hurt. Police say they were notified of the theft when the burglar alarm went off and a witness called. They say the witness followed the truck after it left.

Authorities are also examining footage of the theft filmed by surveillance cameras.

from the Trib

Ninjas trash Milwaukee businesses

Broken glass littered the sidewalks in the North Avenue area near Prospect and Farwell, as group of suspected anarchists left their mark in that section of Milwaukee's east side.

The vandals are accused of breaking windows late Friday night at a U.S. Bank Building, Whole Foods Market, Bruegger's Bagels, and Qdoba.

Witnesses told police that a group of about 20-30 vandals dressed in black and wearing masks committed the vandalism.

Police are looking into whether the damage was related to a protest earlier in the evening by a group of self-titled "anarchists" in the Riverwest area.

video here

New Pilsen-area newspaper released at May Day

We will be distributing copies of a new pilsen-area radical newspaper "Paloma Negra" at this year's May Day actions.

Paloma Negra is a radical, independent, anti-profit community newspaper in Pilsen that connects local issues to the global resistance against oppression.

Paloma Negra es un periódico independiente, radical, sin ánimo de lucro y comunitario en Pilsen que conecta temas locales con la resistencia global contra la opresión.

The topic of this special May Day edition is immigrant and labor rights.

Pick up a copy at Lichen Lending Library 1921 S. Blue Island OR you can download a printable PDF copy of the newspaper at www.palomanegra.info/palomanegra-1-mayday.pdf

If you want to help distribute copies, participate in the next issue, or have general comments or questions contact us at info (at) palomanegra.info

from http://www.palomanegra.info

Mke: Solidarity Attacks with I-69 Arrestees

On Friday the State of Indiana arrested two people in connection with resistance to the construction of Interstate 69.

We are entirely unwilling to accept such actions by the State. To express our deepest solidarity with those arrested, we attacked four condominiums in Milwaukee's Riverwest neighborhood. We smashed windows and glued locks. In particular, we targeted "green" condo developments. Next time we will be even more dreadful. The most revolutionary form of solidarity is to deepen conflict. We have identified the same faults, and are glad to be the contradiction that will rip them wide open. We won't stop until we've derailed, burned and scattered the ashes of the "unstoppable train" that is this social order.

As always, eternal war on capital in all of its ugly permutations and forms.

Yours,
the wild ones.

from Milwaukee IndyMedia

Woman tears up grass doing 'donuts' in Millennium Park with stolen ambulance

A northwest suburban woman allegedly stole an ambulance from a hospital in Park Ridge Monday evening and drove it into downtown Chicago, tearing up the grass in Millennium Park before she was arrested.

Estera Bulbucan, 25, of the 9100 block of North Lincoln in Des Plaines, was charged with damage to public property, a misdemeanor, and possession of a stolen motor vehicle, a felony, according to Central District police.

Bulbucan allegedly stole the private ambulance about 5:30 p.m. from Advocate Lutheran General Hospital, 1775 Dempster St. in Park Ridge, and was arrested about 7 p.m. at 30 N. Michigan Ave., near Millennium Park, police said.

A police report stated that Bulbucan was observed sitting in the driver's seat of the Advance ambulance, and as park security approached, she drove off in circles, tearing up the grass in the park before the security officers flagged down Central District tactical unit officers, who stopped her and determined that she did not belong in the vehicle. She was arrested and charges were approved about 10:40 p.m. Monday, according to police News Affairs.

from the Trib

STFU

I don't mean to contribute to the hysteria that tends to develop in the immediate aftermath of someone's arrest, so first I'll recommend re-reading Harold Thompson's classic Staying Free by Shutting the Fuck Up: Anarchist Survival Guide for Understanding Gestapo Swine Interrogation Mind Games (that's a mouthful).

A couple folks in Indiana were arrested today related to anti-I-69 organizing, and folks at the Finding Our Roots check-in point here in Chicago have noted that a pig was asking questions and showed a photo of someone they are still looking for, although it is unknown if these two situations are related.

If you are an activist who has experienced harassment because of your political beliefs (or your perceived political beliefs) please call the National Lawyers Guild "Green Scare Hotline" 1-888-NLG-ECOL.

warrants & updates here

Boy calls pigs on their shit, gets ass beat

Chicago police are looking into an accusation that police beat an autistic 16-year old boy whose parents say got "scared" and ran from officers, WGN-TV is reporting.

The boy's parents said the incident took place about 10 p.m. Wednesday near their place of business in the Little Village neighborhood on the Southwest Side. They said he was standing outside when he was approached by two officers. The boy ran and police chased him, cornered him and one officer hit him so hard with his club that the boy required eight staples in his scalp, the parents told WGN.

"It's not nice hitting other people like that," the boy told the station. "Try asking more nicely."

from the Trib

Parking meter revolt continues

Over the course of the past few weeks, readers have sent us more photos of vandalized meters, and we've come across them, as well. Meters clogged with expanding foam and super glue, stolen meter heads and parking meters knocked over by cars.

A reader named Gary, who sent the photo of the bent meter, when asked if he thought it was the result of vandalism stemming from the meter rate increases said, "All I can tell you is that this meter was straight a few days ago, but after the rates went up, I found this meter like this."

pics and more at Expired Meter

Anarchist attacks around Chicago Wednesday

Why do we fight? Why do we even attempt to fight the totality of domination and exploitation? If what we seek is a world in which we are free to truly express our desires, then we must create it by destroying all relations based on power and commerce. These three targets were chosen for that reason.

Last night, April 22nd, an Olympic ad was defaced and altered in East Pilsen. This target was chosen simply because we refuse to allow the city and its corporate pals to celebrate the intensification of capitalism and the displacement of people.The three sided ad originally had glorified pictures of athletes and the word "Imagine". The largest side now reads "NEVER" and has a nice big circle A as well. The right side now reads "Imagine RIOTS".

The next target was a building owned by capitalist land lord Podmajersky. Podmajersky is a major force in the gentrification of Pilsen. Once you look, you can see his high rise condos and buildings that plague the area all around. Two windows were smashed on a building owned by Podmajersky near his headquarters on Halsted. A third window was smashed with a parking meter that bore a message. The message reads "Dear Racist Capitalist Scum, You and your tenants are displacing us. This is our response and it is only the beginning." And we left a winking smiley face at the bottom just for you, Podmajersky!

But do we really need a campaign to attack all these oppressive institutions? Do we need any other reason then to destroy all relations based on domination and capital? To highlight this point, a large window was smashed and another window was damaged on a Standard Bank near the Sheridan red line. We did this for no other reason than to attack an institution that perpetuates our misery and feeds off our exploitation. Do we want the system to change or do we want its total abolition? Even if the city doesn't get its corporate circus and even if all the capitalist scum like Podmajersky stop gentrifying our neighborhood, we will continue to attack. Insurrection ends when domination does.

Towards a Spring Social War!

from Chicago IndyMedia

an interesting related article from the Sun-Times

Finding our Roots, April 24 - 26

Finding our Roots has posted its schedule and descriptions of the workshops for this weekend's conference.

Saturday 11-12:15
Department of Space and Land Reclamation: 8 Years Later
Gentrification: Containment, Displacement, Yuppie Infestations, and the Resistance to Come Which Way To Nowhere? A Short History of Anarchist Spatial Theory and Practice

Saturday 12:30-2
“The Left is Dead”: “Ultra-Cutronism” and the “Anarcho-Autonomous” Milieu
Bash Back 101: Tactically Queering Environments
Let’s Organize the Hood: Organizing in Poor Communities of Color and Among Impoverished Populations

Saturday 3-4:15
The Politics of Nonviolent Action
Mad Liberation and Safe Space

Saturday 3-6
Collective Living Spaces: A Roundtable Discussion
Teaching and Organizing In, Around, Alongside, and Between the Spaces of Academia

Saturday 4:30-6
Spaciality and Transformation
Prison as a Liberated Space: Anarchism and The Revolutionary Prison Movement of the 1970’s

Sunday 11-12:15
Anarchist Alternatives to Coerced Living Spaces
Creating and Maintaining Anti-Authoritarian Queer Space
The Seizure of Space and the Public Sphere: Enduring Lessons from the Zapatistas

Sunday 11-2
Relationship Anarchism: A 3-part Workshop

Sunday 12:30-2
Creating Safe Space in an Unsafe World: Supporting Survivors Whilst Respecting Their
Autonomy
Grey Pollution and Electronic Toxicity
Leisure’s Role in Space and the Anarchist Movement

Sunday 3-4:15
Demilitarizing Space
Public Sex and Social War
Sobriety Within the Struggle
A Return to the Land

Closing plenary, Sunday 4:30-6
A History of Anarchist Spaces in Chicago

Tweens trash car dealership

MILWAUKEE--Surveillance video shows several suspects destroying dozens of brand new cars parked on the Don Jacobs car lot at night. The damage is severe... broken windows, ripped interiors, dents, and smashed windshields.

"We can't believe how much damage they did," Don Jacobs General Manager Andy Haros said.

from TMJ 4

Chicago Insurgent Network's First Strike at the City Of Chicago and the IOC

There has been a recent spark of sabotage among Chicago's residents in regards to the coming Olympic bid, the economy, and gentrification in general. An Olympics 2016 "Imagine" billboard was altered near the intersection of Diversey and Elston Aves last night. The buildboard now reads a truer sentiment: "Imagine (A) Social War". To give them a taste of what we meant, 30 parking meters and 2 ATMs were disabled; later in the night, the locks were glued shut on a Chipotle and a T-Mobile store.

The infamous CPD have scared us into hiding for too long. Spring is here, a season of renewal, and the time to act is now. The city continues to demean us with their Olympic advertising and corporate pride, giving free 2016 shirts to the same members of our communities who'll be displaced if we recieve the bid; all the while using symantics like Obama's: "hope", "change", "imagine". The state won't wait to destroy our communities, so we can't wait to fight back.

The words echoed on the billboard, foretelling of SOCIAL WAR, are just the beginning. We will continue to strike, in the dead of night, when you least expect it. Though, there is one thing you can expect: an all out riot on the streets of Chicago in 2016, and continuous, more and more rapid struggles and direct action from us here in these communities, already ravaged so much with poverty, stricken with fear, and with (almost) nothing left to lose.

from Chicago IndyMedia

Murderous Chicago pig confronted at courthouse

A melee broke out this afternoon after a bond hearing for a Chicago police detective charged with drunk driving and causing an auto crash two days ago that killed two people.

Joseph Frugoli, 41, was ordered held in jail in lieu of a $500,000 bail at the noontime hearing.

As the hearing ended, dozens of friends and relatives of the two victims spilled out into the halls of the Cook County criminal courthouse. Moments later, loud shouting could be heard echoing from the hallway near the courtroom and a fight then broke out, causing several Cook County sheriff's police officers to rush from the courtroom, their radios bursting with chatter.

Officers eventually pushed the crowd outside the main entrance of the courthouse, then across California Avenue onto a grassy area. Tense moments ensued, as people in the crowd hurled epithets at the police.

As of about 12:45 p.m., 10 officers stood guard in front of the courthouse and much of the crowd remained.

Cook County Sheriff's spokesman Steve Patterson said the family and relatives apparently became infuriated at the bail amount, and left the courtroom talking loudly. Once outside, they confronted passersby "insisting this was a travesty, that the police are covering this up, that because he's going to be released it's all a conspiracy," Patterson wrote in an e-mail.

from the Trib

Direct action against potholes

What to do when there are potholes on your street and the city won't pave them fast enough?

Patch them yourself.

That's what a West Side organization did today. Residents from the Austin neighborhood bought four bags of Quikrete from Home Depot for $50 and used shovels, rakes and a roller to fill about seven holes on the 4800 block of West Van Buren Street.

"The city's not doing it so residents need to take the matter into their own hands," said Elce Redmond, organizer with the South Austin Coalition.

The group fronted the $50 for the bags of asphalt mix. Neighbor Ernest Roberts luckily had a 50 pound roller in his garage -- left behind by a previous owner.

Roberts complained about Mayor Daley's slow efforts in repairing potholes in the neighborhood.
"He's too slow to getting around to here," he said.

Chicago Department of Transportation spokesman Brian Steele said that the agency plans repairs based on the volume of 311 pothole complaints and the amount of traffic streets experience.

CDOT received just one call about potholes in the 4800 block of Van Buren in the last two months, he said. The agency has repaired about 300,000 potholes since Dec. 1 and hasn't received state funding for resurfacing since 2006, he said.

from the Trib

FYI

New sport-utility vehicles arriving in Chicago police districts have officers concerned after discovering gaps in the cage between the back and front seats.

The gaps have been covered with a heavy-duty plastic and secured with Velcro, police sources said. But some officers are concerned a detainee could still break through.

The gaps have been covered with a heavy-duty plastic and secured with Velcro, police sources said. But some officers are concerned a detainee could still break through.

Greg Bella, a Fraternal Order of Police official, said he worries a detainee "could push the plastic, reach around and choke the guy in front."

thanks to the Trib

Protestors to convince IOC Olympics are bad

A small group of protesters has gotten the attention of the International Olympic Committee inspection team that’s in Chicago to take a closer look at the city’s bid to host the 2016 Summer Olympics.

Nine people from the group No Games Chicago carried a banner that read "Shut Down the Olympic Bid" this morning outside the Fairmont Hotel in downtown Chicago, where the IOC evaluation team is staying.

Soon after, a spokeswoman for the protesters said they’d gotten word that the IOC team would meet with them later today.

from the Sun-Times

New Midwest anarchist zine

Although I disagree with their assertion the Midwest is a dead-zone of radical activity, a neat little zine has come out called Words & Letters. It seems to be based more toward the Great Plains areas and is a welcome addition to the developing activity in the Midwest.

Anarchist Olympics: Chicago 2016 mural defaced

Someone defaced a 2016 welcome mural on the Mural Building in the 1700 block of North Ashland Avenue, in an incident that was discovered this morning. Police were called to the building about 7:55 a.m, authorities said.

The damage appeared to have been inflicted with paintballs and workers were already on the scene about an hour later, painting over the splatters.

The former warehouse, which faces the Kennedy Expressway just south of Armitage Avenue, was the site of traffic-stopping ads featuring then-Chicago Bulls player Dennis Rodman for now-defunct clothing retailer Bigsby & Kruthers.

from the Trib

Anarchist Olympics begin: Local Artist Collective Welcomes the IOC

This past week has left us feeling inspired. The bus stops ads, corporations supporting the bid, flags everywhere, buses themselves, the Olympic spirit has gripped the city. Never have we felt such a sense of pride in our greater community. We owe it all to these fine people, who have been kind enough to grace us with their presence for the week. Word got out about the soiree they were having last night, and we felt the need to do something to show them how the city feels, much more than dinner and drinks ever could. We couldn't hide our passionate pride for one more day.

April Fools you fucking idiots!

Last night we paint bombed two billboard monstrosities overlooking the Kennedy expressway. They were Olympic advertisements, just like the ones you see every time you turn your head. Except bigger. We kindly suggest fellow citizens to find friends, some eggs, or paint and bombard the advertisements that are trying to sell gentrification, police oppression, profits for the rich, and annoying tourists.

We Won't Pay!

Fuck the corporate circus, Sabotage the Olympic bid.

edited for readability, from Chicago IndyMedia

Bossnapping: Insurrectionary adventurism or opportunism?

PARIS (AFP) — Bosses across the world are having to break bad news to employees as companies go under. But that can be a risky business in France, where some furious workers have taken to holding their managers hostage to demand better pay-offs.

In the latest outbreak of "bossnapping", workers at a pharmaceutical factory were Wednesday holding their boss in his office for a second day to force him to improve their redundancy packages.

"This action is our only currency. But there is no aggression," said union representative Jean-Francois Caparros from the plant owned by the US industrial conglomerate 3M in the central town of Pithiviers.

The detention came less than two weeks after workers held the boss of Sony France hostage for a night and barricaded their factory entrance with tree trunks. They freed him only after he agreed to reopen talks on their pay-off.

In neither case did police intervene to free the managers, in a tacit recognition that such radical tactics were part of negotiations and that no harm would come to the bosses.

more from the AFP