Wealthy Chicago suburbs are hiring off-duty private security forces of armed cops to patrol their streets as crime rates soar to as high as 86 percent in some neighborhoods.
At least five boroughs north of Chicago have or plan to suspend patrols, including Lincoln Park, Bucktown and Lakeview.
The patrols consist of off-duty police officers who patrol the neighborhood in marked cars equipped with advanced surveillance and communication tools.
Although the patrol officers do not make arrests – their presence is intended to act as a deterrent – they carry guns, as they are still cops.
The patrols are hired by private security companies such as P4 Security Solutions LLC or United Security Inc., companies that are typically hired to guard malls and businesses but are seeing skyrocketing demand for their services.
Chicago has seen a slight decrease in homicides this year compared to last year, although other crimes are on the rise
“It’s a crime,” he said. “Basic crime,” Sean Meehan, director of sales and marketing at United Security Inc., told The Wall Street Journal, “and people in those neighborhoods don’t feel safe.”
P4 Security compiled data from the Chicago Police Department showing a 30% increase in crime in Bucktown in 2022 compared to the same period in 2021, and increases of 47% and 86% in two nearby boroughs.
A Bucktown resident, 34-year-old Josh Lane, told The Wall Street Journal how he was attacked by two men carrying a fake gun while walking his dog last summer.
“It’s a bit like being in a dystopian sci-fi movie watching the blinking green lights go by,” Lane said.
Shortly after Lane’s attack, his Bucktown neighborhood formed an association to organize the hiring and payment of patrols.
A portion of Lincoln Park solicited $175,000 in donations from residents to hire security services for a year.
The use of private security comes as Chicago is plagued by a skyrocketing crime rate and citizens feel their leadership is not protecting them.
In April, reporter William J. Kelly discussed the issue in a press conference with Mayor Lori Lightfoot.
On Tuesday, Mayor Lori Lightfoot (pictured) got into an irritated exchange with reporter William J. Kelly when he called her because she said things were going well in the city
“Across the street we had a duty cop who was a hit and run victim, we have Michigan Avenue, the Magnificent Mile, now called the Mile of Fear, and Water Tower Place returned the keys to the lender, they say ‘They don’t want to be in Chicago anymore.’
“Real Chicagoans ask me, after all the damage you’ve done, how can you even think about running for re-election for mayor of the City of Chicago?” Kelly asked the mayor.
According to Chicago Police Department data, homicides in the city are up 7 percent year-on-year in February 2022, sexual assaults are up 12 percent year-on-year, and serious assaults are up 14 percent year-on-year.
However, the biggest increases were in burglaries and thefts.
Burglaries are up 28 percent compared to the same period last year, with 835 already reported in 2022, compared to 651 reported at this point last year, and thefts are up a whopping 60 percent, with 1,636 reported in 2022 were compared to 1,020 reported in 2022 as of February 2021.
Vehicle thefts are also up 42 percent compared to the same period last year, with 1,571 reported in 2022 and 1,108 in 2021.
An elderly Chicago couple, Bob and Kathryn Tataryn, were brutally attacked by a stranger in February as they were walking home from a subway stop in Irving Park — where homes sell for $550,000 to $750,000.
Bob had a broken nose and severe facial bruising after the attack, and Kathryn required two surgeries to cope with broken wrists and a broken jaw.