The mayor of Evanston and the Evanston Police Department on Monday released statements defending the city's decision to not issue a shelter-in-place order during a fatal shooting last week prompted a lockdown at Northwestern University.
According to officials, Evanston police at 8:30 p.m. last Wednesday responded a call of shots fired at Clark Street Beach, in the 1800 block of Sheridan Drive just south of Northwestern University’s campus.
At least three people were shot in the incident, according to officials. According to the Cook County Medical Examiner, the man killed has been identified as Jacquis Irby, 18, of Skokie.
A second victim, 15, was taken to a nearby hospital in critical condition. A third victim, also 15, suffered a minor gunshot wound, police say.
Around 9 p.m., Northwestern University officials issued a shelter-in-place order, as the suspects were last seen driving north on Sheridan Road, towards the campus.
Approximately an hour later, the campus lifted the order, after police said it was determined there was no immediate threat to the community.
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According to officials, no one is in custody, and an investigation is still ongoing. And while the University did implement an order and issue campus lockdown procedures, the city of Evanston did not.
"The investigation indicates this was not a random act and the participants in the altercation knew each other," a press release from Evanston police read. "The Department did not issue an order to shelter in place because responding officers determined this was not a random act and not an active shooter incident."
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According to a statement from Evanston Mayor Daniel Biss, the city received criticism from residents for the decision, saying that while the investigation into the incident is ongoing, "there's already a lot more that needs to be said."
"First of all, I want to respond to some questions I’ve received about the City’s decision-making and communications on Wednesday evening," Biss' statement reads. "The City quickly determined that this was not a random act and that there was no active shooter, and therefore that residents were not in any immediate threat."
"This view had a significant impact on our communication that evening," the statement continues. "While I understand that some residents may have been puzzled as to why we didn’t issue a shelter in place order or otherwise give people immediate instructions on how to stay safe, I believe strongly that we made the right call—it’s completely essential to reserve those sorts of communications for when they’re necessary, so as to ensure that they’re taken as seriously as possible if they do ever have to occur."
In an update last week, officials at Northwestern University, which did issue a shelter-in-place during the incident, acknowledged criticism it received for its own response, saying that the order did not go out soon enough.
"We have received messages from community members expressing frustration with the length of time it took for the University to inform the community of the shooting and to shelter in place," the update reads. "The first message went out roughly 30 minutes after shots were fired. We agree we should shorten that window."
"We already have met with key members of the leadership team to discuss what happened last night and have instructed them to review our response, our procedures and the phone communication that was sent in error to ensure we do better when the next incident happens," the update goes on to say.
In response to the incident, Biss said Evanston police will be adding additional patrols to the downtown and lakefront areas, in addition to extra police presence that will focus on "neighborhood nuisance complaints and crime hotspots."
The statement also says that the department's and youth and young adult, and community relations staffers will attend blocks parties and fairs, and "will provide additional outreach throughout the community."
Biss' message concludes by saying "it is impossible to discuss Wednesday’s tragedy without addressing the continuing horror of guns, gun violence, and access to guns in our society."
"We know that without fundamentally limiting the availability of guns, we can never fully solve the problem of violence and safety," the statement goes on to say. "My office continues to work on innovative strategies to address the scourge of gun violence, and we’ll continue to be in touch about this."
