Chicago police and public school officials will be stepping up their efforts to prevent youth violence.
Police Superintendent Jody Weis announced that curfew violations in January, February, and March this year were actually fewer than last year, from approximately 5,000 to 4,600. Weis hopes to continue this trend by increasing curfew enforcement.
The Chicago Police Department will also be adding more officers to its Mobile Strike Force, a specialized unit created to replace the scandal-plagued CPD Special Operations Section late last year. Weis says homicides are down 36 percent in the current teams' districts.
However, the new Force members cannot appear from thin air. They will have to be pulled from other districts, and some police are concerned about individual district manpower.
Finally, Weis said the "Txt2Tip" program will be expanded from its 10 pilot schools to locations throughout the city. Students can send anonymous tips to police via their cell phones about possible criminal activity. The program has already received about 70 tips since last September, but none of them have led to arrests.
Matt Bartosik is the editor of Off the Rocks' next issue and a "between blogs" blogger.
