About Town

ETHS 'Moment of Silence' Ignites Emotional Debate On Violence

ETHS students were asked to observe a moment of silence following former student Blake Ross's death, prompting criticism from some Patch readers. Patch opinion columnist Christine Wolf reacts.

In the early morning hours of Mother’s Day, Blake Ross, 20, was shot and killed on the south side of Chicago. Ross was a former student at Evanston Township High School. The following day, a PA announcement informed students at ETHS of Ross’ death. A moment of silence was called for, and grief counseling services were offered. Patch posted a story about his death and the moment of silence--and then the comments started flying. For more community conversation and Evanston news, like Patch on Facebook. “Why was ETHS involved at all? The [guy] was a gang banger and the school has no obligation to glorify him. As a past graduate, current resident, I could care less that he got shot. Let Chicago deal with it. The Board of Ed should reprimand …

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Melanie

10:54 pm on Wednesday, May 22, 2013

To concerned neighbor: Be careful what you wish for. Most minorities, especially Black and Latino males, would never advocate for the "stop and frisk" policy. If you think it is something that you and your family would not mind, then you need to, at the least, take a look at the problems it is causing many innocent civilians in New York City. http://abcnews.go.com/US/nypds-controversial-stop-…   more ›

Governor Quinn: Local Communities Should Have Control in Conceal Carry Law

Gov. Quinn is looking for ways to tighten Illinois' impending conceal carry law, the Chicago Tribune reported this week.

  Gov. Pat Quinn said earlier this week he thinks Illinois communities should be able to exert some local control when it comes to a state conceal carry gun law, according to a report in the Chicago Tribune. The state is working to create a concealed carry law by the June 9 deadline. A federal court ruled late last year that Illinois’ ban on conceal carry was unconstitutional. "I am not excited about this at all," the Tribune reported Quinn as saying. "If this has to happen, it has to have the proper restrictions and limitations... I think we should make sure it's very tight and I think local communities, wherever they are, should have the option to make it as tight as possible in their community." Quinn also has stated his opposition to …

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Patch Chatter

Should Maps of Local Gun Owners Be Public?

A newspaper's map with names and addresses of handgun permit holders in New York state has sparked controversy. We want to hear your thoughts.

In late December, about two weeks after the Newtown school shootings in Connecticut, Patch received a request from a Kenilworth resident to publish a map of gun owners in Cook and Lake counties.  The reader referred to a map, which included the names and addresses of handgun permit holders in Westchester and Rockland counties, N.Y. The Journal News created the map using publically available data and said it was providing a public service by publishing the information. But not everyone agreed. Facebook user Mike Pandolfo was quoted in the New York Times as saying: “Now everyone knows where the LEGAL GUNS are kept, a valuable piece of information for criminals. Why don't you do something helpful, like trying to find out where the ILLEGAL …

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Antonia Duhe

12:23 am on Wednesday, April 10, 2013

I am suggesting we have a liberal, irresponsible press who are using the power of the pen to intimidate gun owners to comply with the constitution-killing liberal Ideology.   more ›

About Town

Police Chief Talks Gangs, Crime Around ETHS

Evanston Chief of Police Richard Eddington answers columnist Christine Wolf's questions about crime around Evanston Township High School, banning guns in Evanston and local gangs.

Hours after I posted an article on Monday, Dec. 3, about a second young man shot and killed near Evanston Township High School in less than three months, I was copied on an email from Evanston’s City Manager Wally Bobkiewicz. In the e-mail, Bobkiewicz asked Evanston Police Chief Richard Eddington to respond to the questions I’d posed at the end of the piece. I asked about the police presence around the high school—where there has been a shocking amount of recent crime—what police are doing to stop gang violence and whether guns could be banned in Evanston, among other questions. Eddington called that afternoon. Below, I’ve summarized the first part of our discussion. Click here to read the second part of my conversation with the chief. Has…

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About Town

'Lose the Swagger': Bestselling Author Advises Evanston Boys

Following the shooting death of 14-year-old Dajae Coleman, columnist Christine Wolf interviews legal analyst and author Lisa Bloom, asking how communities touched by violence can turn things around.

On Sept. 22, 2012, Dajae Coleman was shot and killed less than one mile from his home in Evanston,  just two weeks into his freshman year of high school. His death has touched every generation in this suburb north of Chicago: parents knowing “this could have been my child”; high school students wearing “stop the violence” wristbands in the slain boy’s honor; elementary students whispering about the big kid shot on Church Street. The community has gathered in a multitude of ways. Students created a Stop The Violence In Evanston Facebook page. Residents gathered at two community-wide meetings, one held at the YMCA to discuss a path forward and another at a community center to brainstorm ways to prevent another tragedy. Most recently, the …

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Mayor: 'We Must Work to Get Guns Off the Street"

Evanston Mayor Elizabeth Tisdahl shared a letter to the community after police announced charges against a 20-year-old Evanston man in the fatal shooting of Dajae Coleman.

What follows is a letter from Evanston Mayor Elizabeth Tisdahl, published on the city website Friday, Sept. 28. Patch has inserted relevant links, not Mayor Tisdahl. From Mayor Tisdahl: Today the Evanston Police Department and the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office announced the arrest of Wesley A. Woodson III of Evanston in connection with the murder of Dajae Coleman.  Woodson has been charged with two counts of 1st Degree Murder and seven counts of Aggravated Discharge of Firearm.  My thanks to the Evanston Police, the North Regional Major Crimes Task Force and the State’s Attorney’s Office for their fine work in apprehending and bringing charges against Dajae’s alleged killer. All of us in the City of Evanston also grieve with the …

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About Town

Bullets & Big Macs

We're SO not lovin' it.

Last Friday afternoon, driving my kids to countless errands around town, I felt the dreaded "3:30 p.m. drag."  If you’re an adult, you know the feeling all too well.  I knew a cold, caffeinated drink would wake me up.  I aimed my car toward the McDonald's drive-thru on Dempster, but traffic was annoyingly backed up.  Flashing emergency lights near the corner of Dodge and Dempster indicated some sort of situation.  As my daughter and I neared the intersection, it was apparent that my icy Diet Coke wouldn’t come from McDonald’s: yellow tape was wrapped around the parking lot; police cars and unmarked vehicles blocked every entrance and exit; a helicopter hovered above the snarled traffic.  As the gaping traffic crawled past McDonald’s, we …

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Christine Wolf

8:59 am on Sunday, April 24, 2011

Sheila, Thank you for sharing your experience with the greater community. While I'm glad you and your children were unharmed physically, it's clear you've all been emotionally wounded by the events that day.   more ›