Police arrest mugger

*Police have arrested a man* in the attempted theft of a purse from a
woman on East 59th Street yesterday morning, August 30. The victim has
identified the suspect and he has been charged. Police have evidence
that leads them to believe that this man, along with a companion, who
has also been detained, are responsible for the robbery of a man near
58th Street and Woodlawn Avenue on Tuesday evening, August 29.

Mugging at 58th and Woodlawn

At 11:25 p.m., Tuesday, August 29th, near 58th Street and Woodlawn Avenue, a man was confronted by two other men who demanded his wallet. The victim was struck when he refused. The offenders then took his wallet and fled. Police are investigating.

August 19-August 21st Crimes

August 19-August 21st Crimes (from Chicagocrime.org)
Crimes within 8 blocks of 1500 block E. 55th St.
(I will start posting these reports regularly, as the data becomes available).

Aug. 21

11 p.m. Burglary 5400 block S. Blackstone Ave. Residence

9:30 p.m.Robbery4900 block S. Dorchester Ave. Park property

9 p.m. Other vehicle offenses 5000 block S. Woodlawn Ave. Street

8 p.m. Theft 5300 block S. Cornell Ave. Street

5:30 p.m. Non-criminal 1300 block E. 53rd St. Grocery food store

4:10 p.m. Robbery 1300 block E. 57th St. Sidewalk

3:30 p.m. Robbery 1200 block E. 50th St. Street

6 a.m. Criminal damage 5700 block S. Stony Island Ave. Apartment

5:20 a.m. Motor vehicle theft 5100 block S. Blackstone Ave. Street

12:30 a.m. Robbery 1400 block E. 56th St. Sidewalk

Aug. 20

9 p.m. Theft 5400 block S. Harper Ave. Residence: Porch/hallway

6 p.m. Burglary 5700 block S. Stony Island Ave. Apartment

1:30 p.m. Theft 5500 block S. Kenwood Ave. Other

1 p.m. Motor vehicle theft 5000 block S. Cornell Ave. Street

noon Non-criminal 1400 block E. 57th St. Restaurant

11 a.m. Motor vehicle theft 1300 block E. Hyde Park Blvd. Street

5:37 a.m. Battery 5000 block S. Chicago Beach Dr. Other

2 a.m. Battery 5700 block S. Stony Island Ave. Sidewalk

Aug. 19 (incomplete)

11:47 p.m. Battery 6100 block S. Kenwood Ave. Street

10 p.m. Motor vehicle theft 1700 block E. 56th St. Street

Google Earth Hyde Park Crime Overlay

University of Chicago junior mojowen has created an overlay of Hyde Park Crime for Google Earth from the University's crime alerts. It can be activated simply by enabling the "Google Earth Community" box in the "Layers" menu of Google Earth, or can be directly downloaded from here.

Aug 23 HPH Crime Report

From the Aug 23 Hyde Park Herald
 

Mugging at 57th and Kimbark

From a reader:

Again, great job keeping tabs on what's going on. I'm sure you've received the Safety Awareness message about people being mugged while "distracted" by either talking on their cell phones or listening to their iPods.

Well, here's another incident to add to the crime sheet: A male University of Chicago third-year student, 20 yrs. old, was mugged while on his cell phone this past Tuesday afternoon, at the corner of 57th St. and Kimbark Ave. According to his firsthand account (he's a friend of mine, but I'm sure it's all in the police report anyways), three black teenagers approached him and asked for directions to some street address. As he stopped to tell them, one of the teens punched him in his jaw and another stole his cell phone out of his hand and ran off. As there were several passers-by, a witness called police and got a description of the suspects. After only 20 minutes, the UCPD picked up the teens outside of Harper Library on 59th Street, recovering 2 cell phones, one of which was my friend's.

I am not sure what charges were filed or any other muggings these kids may be attributed to.

Perhaps the Safety Awareness listhost should tell people: "Warning: Do not help anyone when walking down the street."

That should keep us safe.

Thank you for your contribution. Please email tips to hydeparkcrime@gmail.com.
I must admit that I consider the university's tips to be mostly useless and downright annoying. Their good tip is to "be aware of your surroundings." They also advice "never walk alone after dark" -- a good idea, but doesn't always work. Their worst tips are about Nigerian phone scams.

How useful are the university's crime alerts?

U of C alerts ceratainly don't give the complete picture. I've come across several serious assaults on university property at http://www.chicagocrime.org/ that not reported in the emails.

For example:
Case no. HM535868, Armed robbery on College/university grounds
at5700 S. Ellis Ave. on Aug. 12, 2006 at 1:30 p.m.. No arrests.

Case no. HM526760. Aggravated battery: P.O.: Hands feet fist. Hospital building/grounds. 900 E. 58th St. No Arrests. Not domestic.

If I'm wrong- let me know.
Chicagocrime.org is an excellent resource where data like this can be viewed.

Shooting 6200 Greenwood

At 1:20 a.m., Thursday, August 24, on South Greenwood Avenue between 62nd and 63rd Streets, a man was shot three times on the street by three unknown men. He was taken to a hospital and was in stable condition. Police are investigating.

To the Chicago Maroon...

To the Chicago Maroon: in the interests of bloggerdom, please post any questions you have right here on the blog, and I would be delighted to address them.

University of Chicago Police in Action

A UCPD officers gets himself stuck on the curb. Oh, law enforcement. To serve, protect, and get stuck.

Sexual assault

At approximately 3:30 p.m., Wednesday, August 16, near 5800 South Harper Avenue, a woman was approached from behind by a male juvenile who forced her to the ground and sexually abused her. A nearby witness yelled at the offender who fled. He was subsequently apprehended by police, identified by the victim, and arrested.

Hyde Park dunkin donuts and police kick out woman with guide dog

Karen Robinson and a friend stopped at a Dunkin' Donuts at 1411 E. 53rd St. for a smoothie. After repeatedly hearing 'hey, hey, hey' she felt a man touch her on the shoulder and tell her she would need to take Hampton, her black labrador retriever, outside, Robinson said.

"I said, 'No, I don't.' Then he said it again. I said 'I'm visually impaired . . . he is a service dog.' . . . I cited the service dog laws that allow it to be there," Robinson said.

"He said, 'I understand your needs, but you have to tie your dog up outside.' And I told him, 'There's a better chance of tying you up there than me tying this dog up there.' "

Police were called, and the argument continued, with the officers telling her the business had a right to refuse service to anyone they want, she said.

Read more here. Make sure to mention to Dunkin Donuts that you are displeased with this incident!

Crimes decrease on CTA property

Margot Brandenburg, who lives in Hyde Park, said the regular presence of police officers at CTA stations during peak hours "creates the feeling of safety," though the 27-year-old admits she's hesitant to use the el late at night, particularly when traveling outside of the Loop.

Elderly Woman Missing From Hyde Park Neighborhood

Chicago police are searching for a 73-year-old woman who was last seen leaving to pick up a check at a local currency exchange on Tuesday. Mary “Britt” Grays was last seen en route to the area of 35th Street and Indiana Avenue, but she never reached her destination.Grays, of 810 E. Hyde Park Boulevard, is described as a black woman, about 5 feet 6 inches and 200 pounds. She is considered to be fair in complexion, with brown eyes and blond hair.

2 groped on U. of C. campus

Chicago police are searching for a man who groped two University of Chicago students in separate incidents this week on the school's Hyde Park campus.

A man approached the medical students, ages 25 and 27, as they were on the street walking to their jobs at the school's hospital early Monday morning and assaulted them, police said.