Chicago is one of those cities that could be considered an abject failure on policy. It’s not like the Windy City hasn’t had its fair share of criminal element since – for over a century. A day does not go by without press releases flying out of the Chicago PD’s office about the rampant crime. What about early Valentine’s Day morning 2023? A community alert went out concerning a string of residential burglaries.

This alert gives notice to citizens residing in the 009th District (Deering) of burglary related incidents which have occurred during the months of January/February. In these incidents, unknown offender(s) gain entry into residential homes and take property from therein. These incidents have occurred in the general geographical locations listed below

Incident times and locations:

• 3000 Block of South Broad Street on January 27, 2023 between the hours of 2:30PM and 6:00PM.
• 2800 Block of South Thomas Barclay Drive on February 4, 2023 between the hours of 4:30PM and 10:00PM.
• 2800 Block of South Broad Street on February 6, 2023 at 7:29PM.
• 3100 Block of South May Street on February 7, 2023 between the hours of 6:15PM and 6:30PM.

The perpetrators inflicting the community with these robberies gave themselves a few weeks time to get ready for their Valentine’s day apparently. No better way to say “I love you” to your squeeze than with some stolen goods. Like many strings of criminal activity, several locations in a semi-isolated area got hit over a short period of time.

Because looking at the root causes of crime, with mitigating such elements through intervention, and or actually following through with proper prosecutions with those that are caught cannot really be done, Chicago’s finest are moved to issue their recommendations to the population concerning the topic.

• Keep the perimeter of your property well lit
• Report suspicious activity immediately
• Keep doors and windows secured
• Immediately repair any broken windows, doors or locks
• If video surveillance is available, save and make a copy of the incident for investigating detectives.
• If you are a victim do not touch anything, call police immediately
• If approached by a witness to the incident, request contact information
• Secure window air conditioner units.

While we’re talking about property crimes here, what’s noticeably absent from the police’s recommendations is the procurement of and training with a firearm. There are no specific details on each of the incidents and the circumstances, so we can’t say what would have or could have acted as a deterrent to perpetrators. What we do know though is that having a robust population of armed and well trained people does act as a deterrent to criminals, and maybe it’s time the leadership in Chicago embrace that ideal. Not a deep-dish chance in hell that’ll happen.

We know that not much is going to change in these big progressive cities. At least not much is going to change with continuing to run them the way they are now. This alert is just another reminder to the people that even on a day of love and romance, crime does not sleep. No one wants their stuff stolen, only their hearts.