Stolen red-nosed car crashes in Forest Park
Jamesha McChristine has been charged with fleeing and eluding police, criminal trespassing and two counts of criminal damage to property, after stealing a car in Elmhurst and crashing into an apartment in Forest Park on Dec. 20.
McChristine, 19, of Chicago, allegedly stole a black Infiniti decorated with a red Rudolph nose about 3 p.m. in Elmhurst, and drove to Desplaines Avenue in Forest Park, according to a police report. Elmhurst police notified Forest Park of the car theft. Forest Park officers pulled in front of the Infiniti at a stoplight. McChristine reportedly pulled into oncoming traffic and turned left onto Jackson Boulevard. Police turned on their lights and gave chase. She lost control of the vehicle and nearly collided with an off-duty police officer, driving over the curb, across the parkway and lawn, and striking a building at 539 Jackson Ave., showering the inside of the garden-level apartment with glass and debris.
Police say McChristine exited the vehicle and fled northbound on Jackson, toward the alley of the building. They tried to Taser her but missed. She ran across the el tracks and through the CTA parking lot. She buttonholed through a fence and attempted to hide in the bushes, then ran to the back of a house on the 600 block of Grove Lane, forced a rear door open and ran through the home, knocking furniture over along the way with police in pursuit. She crossed over Van Buren Street, climbed onto the hood of a car, and attempted to climb the barbed wire fence into the CTA train yards. Police told her to get down, but she ignored the request. They pulled her to the ground. After a brief struggle, officers handcuffed her, and she reportedly told them, “You’re only doing this to me because I’m black and I did a carjacking.”
Minors try to steal car
A 12-year-old and 14-year-old allegedly attempted to pull a car door open while the driver was still inside. The driver, sitting inside her green Lexus about 6:42 p.m. on Dec. 23 on the 600 block of Harlem Avenue at the Elgin alley, reported that two boys dressed in ski masks came up to her car and tried to pull open the door. The woman reportedly started screaming and pulled the door closed. The boys then ran north through the alley. She gave a brief description to police.
Oak Park police spotted two boys who matched the description at 315 S. Maple Ave. in Oak Park and pulled them over. One reportedly wore an ankle monitoring bracelet and officers learned he’s currently on house arrest for multiple vehicular hijackings. Both were released without charges to their mothers.
Apartment broken into … twice
At some point between 8 p.m., Dec. 22 and 1 a.m., Dec. 23, someone broke into an apartment on the 8000 block of Roosevelt Road and stole a TV, PlayStation and two laptops. According to the police report, the victim believes offenders either broke the lock on the front door or gained access through a window.
Later on Dec. 23, between 9 a.m. and 1 p.m., someone broke into the apartment again, and stole a TV, a bucket full of movies and water bottles.
Running car hijacked
A car was stolen from Thornton’s, 601 Harlem Ave., on Dec. 28 about 5:40 p.m., after the driver left it running in the parking lot. The man left his car running and went inside to use the gas station’s bathroom, according to a police report. He told police he parked the car right by Thornton’s entrance and was inside the gas station for no more than 10 minutes. When he came outside, his Buick was gone.
A second car was stolen from Thornton’s on Dec. 28, after the driver went inside the gas station and left his Honda Odyssey unlocked and running, according to a police report. When the driver walked back outside, the car was gone. He told police he may have seen the car traveling eastbound on Jackson Boulevard, but he wasn’t sure.
According to footage from a surveillance camera, an offender wearing a black coat walked up to the vehicle about 5 p.m., entered the Honda and then drove away.
These items were obtained from police reports filed by the Forest Park Police Department, Dec. 23-29, and represent a portion of the incidents to which police responded. Unless otherwise indicated, anybody named in these reports has only been charged with a crime. These cases have not been adjudicated.
Compiled by Nona Tepper
