CHICAGO (CBS) — Illegal street takeovers have been a problem throughout Chicago for years, but it is not a dangerous problem unique to the city.
Police departments in other major cities are cracking down on the issue, raising questions about whether the same methods could work in Chicago.
Lower Wacker does a hotspot for illegal street takeovers. So the city has installed speed bumps to stop them, and additional preventative measures could be in place soon.
During the street takeovers, large crowds gather on the streets as drivers drift and do donuts at major intersections or empty parking lots, sometimes setting off fireworks or lighting rings of fire in the street.
“A lot of cars are spinning like crazy here at the intersection,” said Ken Jones, who witnessed one such takeover in February.
Often street takeovers or car stunt rallies turn violent or even deadly; causing people to be shot, police officers injured while trying to break them up, and police cruisers sometimes damaged in the process.
“It’s very dangerous to send police officers into that chaotic environment to try to dismantle it,” Ald. Brian Hopkins (2nd), chairman of the City Council’s Public Safety Committee. “The key is to stop it before it reaches that critical mass. Once you get 500 people and they take over Lower Wacker Drive, it’s over. They’ll keep doing it until they’re done with it.”
The San Antonio Police Department has taken special measures to prevent such street takeovers – operations in which police use surveillance and their helicopter to attack the problem or even prevent a takeover before it begins.
“SAPD is aware that we occasionally have incidents involving street racers or individuals performing with their cars by doing donuts, burnouts or other displays of speed and acceleration. Typically these are isolated incidents and we ask the public to please call police and report these activities so we can respond. In the rare event that large numbers of car club members plan ‘street takeover’ events, we monitor these through our Fusion Center and respond to drivers (“swingers” or “drifters”) accordingly. to perform displays of speed and acceleration. We are using all resources, including helicopters, to coordinate a response and keep the public safe,” a SAPD spokesperson said in an email.
Could something similar work in Chicago? Hopkins has scheduled a hearing next month to discuss how the city can step up efforts to address street takeovers.
The city council in 2022 passed an ordinance to increase penalties for illegal street takeovers. Anyone participating in illegal street racing or wandering on a Chicago street could be fined between $5,000 and $10,000, and the cars involved could be seized.
Hopkins supported the ordinance, but said more needs to be done, and that measures taken in other cities could be a start — with the help of city surveillance and CPD helicopters.
“San Antonio has really led the way in using air surveillance technology to prevent these activities,” Hopkins said. “So we need to find alternative ways to prevent this and crack down on the people who continue to do this.”
