Brighton Park latest spot for deadly drag racing trend that lawmakers, police are attempting to curb
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Southwest Side Ald. Marty Quinn, 13th, has had enough with drag racing. Recently, he and his ward superintendent got permission from Chicago police to block off the entranceway to a hot spot for doughnuts and other stunts — the strip mall parking lot on West 71st Street and South Pulaski Road. He encouraged other aldermen to do the same to stamp out such gatherings.
“As evidenced on Saturday, my biggest fear has come to reality with people getting hurt and killed,” Quinn said.
Quinn was referring to the latest fatal incident involving street racing, which occurred over the weekend in the Brighton Park neighborhood. Five people were shot, three fatally, while participating in a caravan of about 100 vehicles at Archer and Kedzie avenues.
“It was a situation where it was really hindering my constituents and the quality of life. It was dangerous,” Quinn said about his ward’s hot spot for drivers. “These caravans pop up instantaneously, all via social media and if you put those parking lots on lockdown, then they have to go somewhere else.”
That’s why Quinn is joining other aldermen, including downtown Ald. Brendan Reilly, 42nd, in co-sponsoring legislation that he said would further crack down on reckless driving. In the proposed ordinance, a broad circle of those involved with the drag-racing or drifting could be penalized.
An organizer, defined as anyone who helps plan or promote the event, could be fined $1,000 to $2,000, while a participant could be subject to $500 to $1,000 penalties. A “spectator,” or anyone present for the purpose of witnessing the drag racing or its preparations, could face $100 to $250 in fines.
He added that his pending legislation is crucial because “it sends a very clear message that the city is taking this seriously and … if you’re going to partake then there’s consequences.”
In July, the City Council unanimously passed an ordinance that would allow Chicago police to impound vehicles they believe were involved with drag racing or drifting, even if the owner is not present.
The legislation did not change existing fees on drag racing and drifting violations or subsequent towing. Anyone caught doing either in Chicago is subject to a fine from $5,000 to $10,000, plus a $500 penalty for towing.
Less than a month after the Chicago Police Department began enforcing the ordinance, police have impounded more than two dozen vehicles and received more than 70 impound requests.
When asked Monday if the ordinance has made a difference in the amount of street racing, a police spokesperson said, “We enforce the law, we enforce the city ordinance, we use every tool at our disposal and this is just one of our tools.” The spokesperson declined to comment further.
According to a police report from the weekend’s fatalities, video footage shows five people who were engaged in a verbal altercation pull out handguns and shoot at each other. One of the shooters fled the scene, the report says. One of the wounded males told police he was watching drag racing when he was shot.
Those who died had not been identified as of Monday afternoon, according to the Cook County medical examiner’s office.
All the people shot at the caravan were males, Deering District Cmdr. Don Jerome said at a news conference , and those who died were 15 to 20 years old. The two people wounded were in serious condition at Mount Sinai Hospital, he added, “but they are expected to recover.”
On scene, detectives recovered casings but no guns. No arrests have been made as of Monday, police said.
Southwest Side Ald. Derrick Curtis, 18th, said he receives calls in the middle of the night about drag racing “all the time,” especially close to his ward’s border with Ford City. He believes that Chicago police are hampered in stamping out reckless driving events because they are afraid of getting in trouble due to “too many layers of accountability,” he said.
“I mean, I want them to be accountable for their jobs,” Curtis said. “I honestly believe that the police officers are more afraid of getting in trouble than they are of actually doing their jobs.”
Still, Curtis said he had faith last weekend’s events could be the tipping point that scares drag racing audiences from coming out again.
“If they don’t have any audience, it’ll all die down,” Curtis said. “I remember saying, ‘All of these people gathered in one place like this, sooner or later, someone is gonna have a gun and they’re gonna bring it out.’ And that’s what happened.”
Downtown Ald. Brian Hopkins, 2nd, said he was disappointed with Chicago police leadership’s strategy to deter drag racing. Although he said he believes recent legislation, such as the impoundment of drag-racing vehicle ordinance he co-sponsored are effective tools, “you can’t do it with a small unit of police officers.”
“I feel like we’ve done what we can do as a legislative body by passing new laws to give the police some support and some more tools, but clearly it isn’t enough, and the problem has not been solved,” Hopkins said. “If anything, it’s getting worse because we’re seeing more and more of these events gathering large crowds. ... It’s not a victimless crime, and we’re just outmanned and out-resourced.”
When a police spokesman was asked if additional officers will be added to the neighborhood following the shooting, the spokesperson said the department had “sufficient resources in place.”
