“Excuse me, Ms. Foxx? Sorry to interrupt your manicure, but I have the Governor on the phone for you.”
What might cause Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker to get the Cook County State’s Attorney on the horn post haste? It might have something to do with embarrassing questions he’s getting about the cash register some armed thieves had just emptied and dumped in front of his Gold Coast mansion.
As CWBChicago reports . . .
Burglars broke into Apple Bite, a liquor store at 2919 North Broadway, around 4:10 a.m. and then burglarized Belmont Harbor Market, 401 West Belmont, around 4:35 a.m., according to separate police reports. They took cash, registers, liquor, and tobacco products.
CPD surveillance cameras captured footage of four offenders leaving the Belmont burglary in a dark-colored four-door pickup truck that headed south on Lake Shore Drive.
Less than ten minutes later, police were called to the 1400 block of North Astor Street in the Gold Coast by someone who saw a group of men throw at least one cash register and other items from a pickup truck directly in front of the governor’s home, according to CPD dispatch records.
Police believe the cash register came from the Apple Bite.
A little later, a string of high-end retailers were burglarized in the city’s Magnificent Mile district, possibly by some of he same thieves who had just stuck their thumb in the eye of the Governor.
Looks and sounds like the Burberry store on Michigan Ave in #Chicago was broken into again. pic.twitter.com/FeGV1QWiU6
— GeorgeMycykNBC (@GeorgeMycykNBC) January 6, 2022
One of the stores that was hit was Burberry. It was the second time the store had been robbed. This week.
Chicago’s hapless Mayor Lori Lightfoot had criticized retailers like Burberry last month for not doing enough to protect themselves from the criminals that the Chicago Police Department can’t catch, the the judges immediately release, and that the State’s Attorney won’t prosecute. She proclaimed that . . .
“Some of the retailers downtown in Michigan Avenue, I will tell you, I’m disappointed that they are not doing more to take safety and make it a priority. For example, we still have retailers that won’t institute plans like having security officers in their stores.
As it turns out, Burberry took the Mayor’s advice and hired someone to keep and eye on the place. Unfortunately . . .
A security guard was working at Burberry overnight, but she told police she was in the bathroom at the time of the burglary, according to a report.
Hey, when you gotta go, you gotta go.
This is what happens when corrupt politicians’ ineptitude, a revolving door justice system, and a “social justice” prosecutor combine to make it clear to a city’s criminal element that it’s open season. Anything goes and they have little to worry about in terms of consequences.
They can operate with impunity because they know the chances of being caught are tiny. And if — somehow — police do manage to catch them, the city’s “progressive” prosecutor will turn them loose to do it all over again.
Yesterday I talked to Chicago Alderman Raymond Lopez about the rampant crime and violence that have become a way of life in the City of Big Shoulders.
You might remember the conference call the Alderman had with Mayor Lightfoot last year as Chicago was being looted after the George Floyd killing. It made national news when the Lopez criticized Lightfoot for being unprepared and the Mayor responded, “I think you’re “100% full of sh!t, is what I think.”
These latest incidents have become so numerous and normal that the Alderman didn’t have details about them yet when we talked. Besides, they just get lost in the noise because it was just another ordinary Thursday for Chicago.
Alderman Lopez slammed Mayor Lightfoot and fellow Alderman Michele Smith about the state of lawlessness the administration doesn’t appear willing or able to get under control.
Smith has her own interesting ideas about how to fight crime in the Windy City. She has “invited” residents to buy their own neighborhood police surveillance cameras — for $25,000 each
Lincoln Park alderman invites residents to buy their own Chicago police surveillance camera — for $25,000 each. Installed.https://t.co/lsFJd0M4WB
— CWBChicago (@CWBChicago) October 23, 2021
She also suggests citizens carry whistles. The Alderman suggests, “If you find yourself in a suspicious situation or witness a crime, blow your whistle. If you hear a whistle, call the police, then MOVE TOWARDS THE SOURCE while blowing your own whistle.”
To be clear, Alderman Smith (a Moms Demand Action member) wants citizens to confront armed criminals while blowing whistles until the CPD arrives. The Alderman should probably coordinate this strategy with the coroner and the morgue to ensure they have room for all of the extra bodies that will inevitably result.
One concern Alderman Lopez has is, if the city continues down its current lawless path, residents will conclude they have no choice but to take matters into their own hands. A lack of meaningful or effective law enforcement and criminal justice could result in citizens acting as vigilantes. Look for the opening of Death Wish: Chicago at a theater near you soon.
As Alderman Lopez told me, the current administration concentrates on “feel-good policing” instead of going after the gangs that are the root of the problem. It essentially boils down to this: get things under control, or people may have no choice but to protect themselves. “Constituents are afraid,” he said, and they deserve better.
