On Monday evening, Chicago’s Hyde Park witnessed another significant gathering of teenagers, prompting a swift response from city police. The event has once again brought the issue of large teen congregations to the forefront, with the city’s leadership now addressing the growing concerns.
Both the city’s mayor and the police chief have expressed their commitment to tackling this recurring issue. They emphasize the need for effective strategies while local residents and community violence interrupters call for meaningful change and parental involvement.
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“There were kids running and jumping from car to car,” recounted Dylan Mears, a resident of Hyde Park, highlighting the chaos that unfolded. A video captured during the incident shows a large group of young people casually walking across the tops of vehicles as they moved en masse through the streets.
The scene was described as chaotic by Jason Hale, another local resident. “There are hundreds of teens, like 500 of them, just scattered around, acting crazy. There’s cops everywhere. It’s chaos,” he said, reflecting on the unruly scene as he and his wife watched from their home near 52nd and Dorchester.
Hale’s car, like many others in the area, bore the brunt of the night’s disorder, sustaining damage amidst the tumultuous gathering. As the city grapples with this trend, the call for action and responsibility has never been more pressing.
Hale and his wife watched as hundreds of teenagers took over his neighborhood near 52nd and Dorchester. His car was among those left damaged in the aftermath.
“They did number right here. This is a huge dent,” Hale said. “People had their windshields crack. People had unbelievable damage to their cars, like, almost total. Just like, I didn’t know people could do that.”
CPD officers were on scene, where they walked with the teens during part of the evening trying to keep order.
Once the 10 p.m. curfew went into effect, police cited three people for curfew violations. A 16-year-old girl was arrested and charged with unlawful possession of a weapon, disorderly conduct and failure to obey police.
That evening, Justin Peters, a violence interrupter and founder of Chitown Crime Chasers, was out with a team to try and keep the peace. At one point, his team rushed to render aid to a eighth grade boy who was badly beaten.
“He was scared. He was he was crying. He was confused. He just want to go home,” Peters said. “We’ve been urging for more parents to just step up and have conversations with their kids about these take overs, the crowds they hang with, the things they do and activities that they do.”
ABC7 Reporter Craig Wall spoke one-on-one with CPD Supt. Larry Snelling about these gatherings. After a police graduation ceremony on Tuesday, told ABC7 that parents and guardians need to do better job in keeping young people out of troubling situations.
“When we don’t hold them accountable, we’re telling them that what they’re doing is OK, and it’s not right. We can’t have them harming each other, harming others, damaging property. We want to make sure that everyone gets to enjoy our city,” Snelling said.
Just last week, another large group of young people descended on the Loop, where fights broke out during a disruptive evening that led to eight arrests and 24 curfew citations.
“Your behavior has to be such that everyone can appreciate. You shouldn’t be trying to harm each other. You shouldn’t be trying to harm others. You shouldn’t be trying to damage property. You know, that may be fun for the person at the time who’s doing it, but it’s not fun for those who are affected by these types of crimes,” Snelling said. “I want everyone to enjoy the city. It is a beautiful city, but we have to follow laws, and if we’re not doing that, then we’re doing something wrong, and everyone has to get involved. “
A drive-by shooting just off the Magnificent Mile on Monday night forced a victim in a red car to crash into other vehicles. That person was not injured, but a woman walking near by was struck by a bullet in the leg. She is expected to be OK. Wall asked Snelling if people should be worried about safety downtown.
“When we see patterns of practice, we put teams together, and we have a laser focus on those particular patterns, and we’re going to continue to do so as we move into the warmer months,” Snelling said.
Snelling said as we head into summer, police will keep modifying tactics as needed to try and prevent teen trends or mitigate bad behavior during them.
“We have to be fluid as a police department. So, as times change, things change, tactics will change, the approach will change. So, we have to make sure that we’re focused on what it is that’s happening, whatever the trend is,” Snelling said.
Mayor Brandon Johnson says these teen trends are not something that Chicagoans should have to get used to and that police are using new methods to work against them.
The mayor said he wants young people to be able to gather downtown or wherever they want, with a caveat.
“But this cannot come at the expense of reckless and irresponsible behavior, particularly behavior that endangers others. Parents and guardians, I need your assistance in making sure that we know where your children are at all times,” Johnson said.
The mayor was asked if he thought the Hyde Park incident could have been prevented.
“I believe that the best way to prevent these gatherings from taking place is that one we create more opportunities for people and that we also hold folks accountable,” Johnson said.
The mayor continued to push back against calls by Ald. Brian Hopkins and others to modify the current 10 p.m. curfew to give police flexibility in dealing with teen gatherings that happen earlier.
Meanwhile, Hyde Park residents want to see more resources for Chicago’s youth and more action from city leaders.
“Providing these sorts of locations where you can hang out without being expected to pay money, and it’s fun to be with your friends is what’s really necessary,” Mears said.
“You need to develop a plan now to tackle it and stop it from happening. This can’t happen, because it’s going to get worse, and there’s going to be a really big crisis,” Hale said.
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