St. Patrick's Day Chicago Police Blotter

Shannon Leigh Webber, Gardy Gilbert, and Bryan Renaud read highlights from the infamous Chicago Police Blotter on St. Patrick's Day. ​

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chicago police scanner highlights

2019

8:15AM — Radio band crackles to life with an officer running a reveler’s name during a street stop. Officer: “Last name is Weed. Like, she’s smoking Weed…”

10:00AM — In Wrigleyville, an officer says issuing tickets for drinking on the public way is “like shooting ducks in a barrel out here” as she issues two more citations at Clark and Eddy.

10:33AM — They’re climbing the trees in Grant Park.

10:34AM — “Uh…He’s, uh, he’s off the tree.”  Another angle:

12:27PM — “We are not going to send officers into those ‘climbing the tree calls.’ It’s too densely populated there. Record it for the log, but we’re not going in there,” CPD deputy chief says.

12:55PM — In Lakeview: “Citizen reports you have a male out front drinking beer and making facial gestures.”

1:36PM — Lincoln Park Alderman Michele Smith has called 911 to complain about a large party in the 900 block of West Dickens. Officer: “Those parties gonna be going on all day.”

1:46PM — 3800 block of Lakewood: “Disturbance mental. Male, white, 30, long sleeve shirt, vest, laying on the caller’s doorstep having a conversation with himself.”

1:59PM — Three more arrested downtown. Outside the Congress Hotel this time. Charged with fighting and breaking out the hotel’s windows.

2:06PM — Officer: “Do you have a description of this” lost female?
Dispatcher: “She’s a drunken female who claims to be a college student.”
Officer: “There are a lot of those around here today.”

3:09PM — Male caller says the valet stole his wife’s wallet from their car. 100 block of North Wabash.

3:15PM — Officer requests an ambulance for “two females, mid-20’s throwing up all over the place” at 355 East Grand.

3:36PM – 7214 N Harlem: A 50 year-odl female stealing in the antique shop . 

4:10PM — “Older male white, bald, green shorts, is urinating in the middle of the street” at Montrose and Clark.

4:20PM — Biggest arrest of the day. Five men and women are hauled in after a fight at Murphy’s Bleachers in Wrigleyville.

4:29 PM – N Milwaukee: A male causing a disturbance inside Superdawg.

4:44PM — Caller says a female got into his car at Clark and Barry and she’s demanding that he take her home. He has an Uber sticker in his window, but he’s not in service, and she refuses to get out.

5:36PM — “A highly intoxicated white male wearing a large styrofoam sombrero” is lying down in the middle of Grand and State.

6:03PM — Whoops! Remember that call about the wife who had her wallet stolen by a valet in the 100 block of North Wabash three hours ago? The dispatchers forgot to assign that call to anyone. “Do you think they are still there?”

6:52PM — Back in Lakeview, a 911 caller reports that there is an unknown man living inside his green Jeep.

7:52PM — “Criminal trespassing at the Red Line Addison.” CTA reports that a male in a green jacket was riding on top of the train when it pulled into the station. There’s also an earlier call from a witness who saw him on top of the train as it pulled out of the Belmont stop.

8:42 PM – Addison/Halsted Whole Foods Three people argue with employees after attempting to steal items.  

11:23PM — Neighbors report a party so large, that people are directing traffic for arriving revelers. 2458 North Clybourn. (The same house where an AirBnB party had a 6-hour standoff with a SWAT team last week.)

2:12AM — In Wrigleyville, “Jeremy states that an intoxicated male white in his 40’s slapped him on his butt in front of Sluggers.”  

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2018

10:12 AM — Dearborn and Randolph: people are climbing on the CTA bus.

11:32 AM — CTA says people are throwing beads at passing trains. 900 block of Wellington.

11:42 AM — “They’re throwing bottles by the Channel 7 van.”

2:27 PM — Lakeview. 2900 block of North Sheffield. “The condo  president is receiving calls from tenants about a disruptive party.  There’s underage drinking, public urination, marijuana smoking,  destruction of property and much more.”

3:24 PM — “Getting a call of a disturbance at Sheffield and  Wolfram. Anonymous caller says two females are trying to make out in  front of him. Caller says he’ll be out front waiting for the police.”

4:42 PM — State and Illinois. “We got a female white who fell and hit her face on a pole.” Dispatcher: “Oh, my! Is she intoxicated?”

6:24 PM — 900 block of Fletcher: Male in a jacket and jeans. “He’s drinking, smoking, and taking pleasures with himself.”

6:44 PM — “Caller says the male is dancing on a table at Roy’s, urinating on the side of the restaurant.” 

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2017

12:50PM — A Wrigleyville resident reports a suspicious person: “Male, white, with white hair is on the roof of their building. He’s asking a lot of questions about their air conditioning unit.”

1:05PM - The previous call about the man and the AC unit was a false alarm. The man is there to fix the unit. 

1:35PM — The first two arrests of the day are made—both at Slugger’s World Class Sports Bar.

1:48PM — A 911 call taker reports that she has “a female on phone moaning and saying she’s in Chicago, and giving the numbers to an address. It sounds like she’s in pain. She did flush the toilet a couple of times.”

2:20PM — Woman passed out in the alley behind Old Crow Smokehouse. She’s hauled off to Thorek Hospital for “detox’o’cation.”

3:05PM — “Female says she was thrown down the stairs at the bar.”

4:27PM — “Group of male whites throwing beer from the roof.”

4:45PM — Southport and Roscoe: Caller reports an intoxicated white man in his 20’s who’s wearing a green blazer is “looking into all the cars. He’s trying to break into a car. Drunk.”

5:04PM — Another arrest. This one is also outside of Sluggers World Class Sports Bar.

5:13PM — 1100 block of West Eddy: “The garbage cans and Porta-Potties have all been knocked over. I don’t know what they want you to do about it.” “Great.”

5:29PM — They’re dropping like hot potatoes now.
Dispatcher: “Is Merkles different from Old Crow?”
Cop: “Yeah. It’s different”
Dispatcher: “It may be the same. They both say they have a female passed out”
Cop: “They’re two different places.”
Cop 2: “All drunken idiots over here”

5:32PM — Confirmed. Merkles and Old Crow both have ladies down.

5:50PM — “Across from Wrigley Field. Male white bleeding from the face and wiping blood all over people.”

8:25PM — Over on Dayton Street, a frantic caller reports that a man is scaling the side of her apartment building.

8:33PM — “They’re calling back from Dayton. They know the guy who’s climbing up their building, so no police service is needed.”

11:05PM — Canine unit requests assistance for a man who’s “creating a disturbance” at the Belmont Red Line station.

11:10PM — Officer at Belmont Red Line station: “Can you send an ambulance? The guy causing this ‘disturbance’ can’t walk.”

11:43PM — “See Amit and his friends. They found a female Native American with a green jacket, jeans, and black boots intoxicated and confused” at Diversey and Mildred.

11:47PM — Speaking of intoxicated and confused: Noise disturbance on Racine. “Bunch of males playing a football game in the alley. They’re knocking over garbage cans, saying they’re getting ready for the Bears game.”

1:50AM — Something about “she jumped the curb at the Taco Bell, ran the light and is now going in and out of traffic northbound.” 

3:45AM — 1400 block of Waveland: “A group of people in the alley fighting over a dumpster.”

4:54AM — “Miss Eubanks wants police assistance. She says they were bar hopping and they can’t find her friend who’s intoxicated. She’s been circling the area for an hour and can’t find her. The friend was wearing an army green tank top with ‘University of Miami’ on it and ripped up jeans.”

5:10AM — “3700 N. Clark. Four males are following a female leaving the bar southbound. Complainant says they are being nice to her and she thinks that’s suspicious.”

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2016

9:55 AM — “[Sigh] Oh, they’re dropping already. Can you head over to 500 West Madison for the female passed out in the food court?

12:54 PM - Woman vomiting on pedestrians from above on the Armitage Brown Line Platform.

1:29 PM — “Is your person down the one between the porta-potties or the one lying in the field?”

1:36 PM — Back in Lakeview: “Oakdale and Sheffield. The residents are complaining because there’s tons of intoxicated
people vomiting on their lawn.”

1:55 PM — A man has passed out drunk on a float. ““Is he staying on the float?” “NO. He fell off. He in the middle of the
ground.” “Got it. Male drunk off the float!”

​5:46 PM — Clark and Belmont: “Caller says a man with pigeons on his jacket is trying to scare a woman in a cheetah-print outfit at Target.”

6:21 PM — Dispatcher: “Cierra again?!? I swear to god, this woman is going bar-to-bar-causing trouble.”

6:22 PM — Woman says a male Hispanic just sold her sister crack cocaine at the adult bookstore, 53 West
Hubbard. The caller will be inside the bookstore.

10:13PM — Michael called 911 to report that his friend Bridget is lost near Addison & Clark. She’s
blond and wearing a green shirt.

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2015

11:03AM — Britney calls police because the bouncer at Red Ivy, 3525 Clark, thinks her ID is fake and he won’t give it back. Police run the ID, confirm that it’s legit, and Britney gets it back. Yay, Britney!

12:08PM — A man is taken into custody outside of Slugger’s bar for allegedly battering a police officer. 

1:47PM — An ambulance is summoned for “a guy so drunk he can’t stand up” at 3525 Clark.
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4:07PM — “An intoxicated woman banging her head on the concrete” 3300 Clark.

4:31PM — A tall white male wearing one shoe is screaming at a woman in the 3500 block of Janssen.

4:39PM — A tall white male with red hair and one shoe is running westbound on Grace. He’s been badly beaten. Officers find the man on Ashland and learn that he had been jumped and beaten by four men at Addison and Clark minutes earlier. He declines police and fire services. The cops give him a ride home.

5:26PM — A Wrigleyville woman asks her neighbors to turn down their party music. They threaten her and claim to have a gun.

5:44PM — People are throwing "valuable beer" from the second floor of 3118 Sheffield.

6:20PM — Three white guys are fighting in the Wrigleyville McDonald’s.

9:00PM — “An unknown white male wearing a green tuxedo shirt and a green top hat is on her back porch and it’s supposed to be a secured area!” 1400 block of Roscoe.

9:41PM — A “very drunk man” threatening the street musician at Broadway and Diversey. “He’s picking up the instruments and throwing them” at the victim.

9:44PM — Couple having sex on the wood chips at the back of a playlot. 918 Fletcher. 

11:45PM — Two men are fighting over a woman in the iHop parking lot, Grace and Halsted.

2:51AM — Another large fight erupting outside of Taco Bell. 

11:16AM — Walgreens, 714 Diversey, reports a person passed out in their bathroom. Officer arrives and reports, “You’re not going to believe this, but this is a leftover from yesterday’s festivities.”