Tunney Organizes Community Walk in Lieu of Lake View Crime

Ald. Tom Tunney (44th) announced Thursday he and local police are organizing a community walk to help spread the word about Lake View’s issue with late night crime.

The walk is scheduled for Friday, Aug. 9 at midnight. Neighbors are encouraged to meet at the 7-Eleven at 3407 N. Halsted St. in Boystown to walk through Lake View with officers from Chicago’s 19th District Police Department, spreading safety tips and information to neighbors.

“We have been dealing with late night crime on our streets for years,” Tunney wrote in his newsletter. “As a victim of a robbery myself, I understand everyone's concern and I share it. We all need to be aware of our surroundings and not be afraid to call 911 with as much information as possible when you see someone behaving suspiciously or committing a crime. We must all work together with the police to effectively fight crime.”

The walk comes on the heels of a 19th Police District community alert regarding six armed robberies, also issued Thursday. The warning asked neighbors to be on the lookout for two men who are believed to be responsible for six armed robberies in nine days. 

Four of those robberies were in Lake View, one in Lincoln Park and another in Ravenswood.

To combat the community’s robbery problem, Tunney says his office has been working closely with District Commander Elias Voulgaris to more effectively police Lake View.

“We will have a saturation team in the 19th District on weekends and administrative officers in the department are being redeployed to work midnight shifts,” Tunney wrote. “Additionally, officers will be reassigned to foot patrols everyday during peak hours.”

Tunney added that he has worked hard during his tenure as alderman to increase safety measures, including identifying crime hot spots, installing police cameras, improving lighting and restricting late night parking.