The Chicago Spectator

This is the 2025 16th & 17th District Gun Crime Map. We track shootings (w/ people shot & no one shot), robberies, carjackings, sexual assaults (at gunpoint), agg assaults w/ guns, robberies. Updated periodically. 2025 will also track home invasions. google.com/maps/d/u/0/edi…

CPD deserves better. This brazen attack on our @Chicago_Police officers calls for license revocation, car impounding, arrests, maximum fines - actual consequences. @ChicagosMayor, if you won't lead, get out of the way and let the police do their jobs. #consequences #accountability #snapcurfew

An Illinois State Trooper pulled up to a horrific multi-vehicle crash on I-94 in Chicago. A woman was trapped inside her wrecked Chevy Impala, her jammed seatbelt pinning her in place. He slashed the belt with his pocket knife, then moved to the passenger side to pull her free as cars flew past at highway speeds. Before his hand reached the door, a speeding SUV slammed into the Impala’s front, spinning the entire car like a deadly top, right where he had been standing seconds earlier. A second vehicle immediately rocketed in, smashing the wreckage and missing him by mere feet. He had been exactly in the path of the first impact. In under ten seconds, the trooper narrowly escaped death.

The fact that from Gov Pritzker on down, not one SAFE-T Act sponsor has had the guts to at minimum say they are willing to review it for flaws and be open to amending it, even as a first step, tells me all I need to know about their lack of leadership or care for public safety.

Democrats will work overtime to keep these kids out of jail and prison while pretending to believe that the NRA is responsible for the shootings they’ll inevitably commit/have already committed.

A refreshingly reasonable position from an elected official. We hope more find the courage to stand up on such a common sense issue.

Judge John Lyke's catastrophicly poor judgement is the reason why Chicago Police Officer John Bartholomew is dead and another @Chicago_Police Officer is fighting for his life. He could have detained this violent repeat offender. He chose to set him free. The offender went on to murder. And this wasn't a nuanced case. Anyone with even a modicum of common sense should have agreed with the state's attorney's "rigorous objections" to release, given his extensive criminal history. I've said it many times before and I'll say it again. The SAFE-T Act provision allowing for violent criminals to be set free on electronic monitoring - and worse yet, with two days off the monitoring grid - must be repealed. It is a massive failure that has led to violent deaths. One death as a result of this, is one too many. Violent criminals should NOT be eligible for electronic monitoring. How many more innocent people have to die before this absurd policy is undone? Police arrest criminals. We finally have a state's attorney who prosecutes criminals. And then, instead of all judges protecting society from those criminals, some judges let them right back out to reoffend. And there's never accountability for those judges. There is seriously something so wrong about this.

Like many of you, I have family and friends who are Chicago Police Officers and Firefighters. This has been a horrific year for both departments. These men and women chose this path to protect and serve—to keep YOU safe. They know the risks. They understand the job could cost them their lives. What they did not sign up for is being killed by criminals who should never have been on the street in the first place—criminal predators enabled by a system that too often protects them more than it protects the very people sworn to defend us. We are living under a system that treats incarceration as a greater injustice than the loss of innocent life. A system that allows repeat offenders and violent predators to walk free while awaiting trial. A system that only pretends to care after tragedy strikes—when an officer or firefighter is killed—and then offers talk instead of action. Talk that never leads to real change unless it benefits the predator. So like many of you, I’m asking: how do we help the families devastated by these preventable acts? Start by mourning. Pray for the families. Stand with the departments who carry this burden every day. Then take action. Look up your State Representative and State Senator—the offices too many people ignore while city politics dominates the headlines. Real change starts at the state level, whether people are paying attention or not. If you want to address crime in this city in a meaningful way, it starts with the repeal of the SAFE-T Act. Not tweaks. Not amendments. Repeal. And if your State Representative or Senator doesn’t support that, then it’s on you to do something about it. Elect someone who aligns with your values. Step up and support a candidate. Be part of the process. Because if nothing changes, nothing changes—and more families will pay the price.

Another SAFE-T Act success story!

This story has it ALL. - Multiple time convicted felon - Out on EM (multiple times, despite previously being a convicted felon, the issue being judges) - Multiple failures to abide by EM terms (judges) - Paroled EARLY despite constantly proving to be violent and a danger (Parole Board) - Multiple concurrent terms for multiple felonies (IL law allows it, judges) - Standard 50% reduction in sentences (IL law) - Credit for time on EM (IL law) At one point, this guy had four pending felony cases, pleaded to two, walked in and out of prison the same day with credit for time served and got a standard 50% reduction in sentencing, got electronic monitoring for the other two pending cases. This doesn't even include the fact that EM participants are allowed 48 hrs of unrestricted movement. The criminal "justice" system allows criminals to thrive. It gives them every opportunity to continue their criminal ways and has essentially zero consequences until they kill someone, and by then, it's far too late.

Sources: The man who killed a Chicago cop and gravely wounded the officer’s partner: • Is an electronic monitoring escapee • Is a parole absconder • Has armed robbery and armed carjacking cases pending cwbchicago.com/2026/04/cop-ki…

A 38 year old man is dead and another gravely wounded by a 5 time armed habitual offender. There are no “both sides” to this argument. Violent criminals deserve no space in our society and it’s suicidal empathy to think anything other. Innocent victims always pay the price. May Officer Bartholomew rest in peace. May his partner find a way to pull through. May our officers and their families know many in this city support you and thank you for your willingness to make the ultimate sacrifice for Chicagoans.

If repeat violent offenders cycle in and out with no consequence, something is broken. Fix the law – or own the outcomes. #Chicago

Sickened to hear of the shooting of two Chicago Police Officers at Swedish Hospital this morning. Please pray for our fallen officer, his family and loved ones, and lift in prayer the other officer who is currently fighting for his life. My deepest condolences to the family of the fallen officer, his friends, and the entire Chicago Police Department family. May this fallen hero rest in God's peace and eternal glory. Our law enforcement officers head out every day, risk their lives for people they've never met, while their families pray they make it home safely. Today is a tragic day for both of these officers' families, and for our wounded City. To all the brave men and women who put on the uniform and serve in what is the most noble yet most thankless job - Thank You. May God and St. Michael protect you and get you home safely at the end of your watch. 🙏🏼💙😢

Seems like the correct order here would be to extend your concerns for the officers first and THEN provide traffic tips. But, of course, we're not trying to become Mayor of Chicago...

5145 N California (Swedish Hospital): #ChicagoScanner #Chicago 10:53-10:56 AM: Zone 11 units sent to 10-1 a possible active shooter after multiple calls reported shots fired inside the hospital and a possible officer down. SWAT/SORT called to stand by; air cleared for unfolding situation. 10:58 AM: Confirmed officer shot (prisoner-related); offender last seen running on California. Described as Black male, tall/heavyset, short hair, armed (possibly with officer's weapon). 10:59 AM: Offender at California/Winnemac; extreme caution ordered. 11:00 AM: Two officers shot confirmed; more cars requested from north end units. Perimeter forming near parking garage; hospital shutdown, ambulances diverted. K-9s en route for tracking. Incident still active with offender at large on foot.

Thank you to everyone who showed up to support the family of fallen hero Firefighter/EMT Michael Altman's fundraiser. It was a massive outpouring of love and support for his family. I truly appreciated the opportunity to attend and extend a helping hand to our firefighter community during this somber time. May the memory of Michael Altman rest in peace. Shout-out to my fellow celebrity bartenders: @JohnGarciaABC7 @CourtSpinelliTV @EddieVolkman @amyjacobson @paulvallas

It appears @ChicagoContrar1 @FlorianSohnke have been hacked. @Support @X @elonmusk restore their access and make this right maybe?

Play stupid games Win stupid prizes

Residents confronting CPD is not new, but we should expect instances such as this to occur more frequently. These residents are merely following the example of the mobs who pursued and harassed federal agents enforcing immigration law. As we know, residents tormenting ICE was all encouraged by @ChicagosMayor and @JBPritzker.