Mom flees cop, leaves kid in car
Forest Park police charged a 34-year-old Forest Park woman with endangering the life of a child after she allegedly abandoned her vehicle with her child inside in an attempt to run away from a police car on foot during a traffic stop on March 4 and about 8:10 a.m.
A patrolling officer observed a 2014 Nissan Sedan traveling on Harlem Avenue at a high rate of speed. As the officer pursued the vehicle, the driver pulled into a parking stall on the northwest corner of Elgin Avenue and Roosevelt Road.
When the officer pulled up with his lights and sirens activated, the driver reportedly flung open the driver’s door and ran away from the car south to Roosevelt Road and then west on the north side of Roosevelt Road.
The officer pulled his squad car in front of the woman at Roosevelt Road and Marengo Avenue, told her to kneel to the ground and that she was under arrest. She allegedly resisted an officer’s attempts to handcuff her.
When the officer went back to the woman’s car, which was still running, he noticed her 9-year-old son was slouched in the passenger’s seat, as if he were hiding.
After calming him down, police learned that his mother was driving him to school.
An officer took the child to the school, where the principal confirmed that he was a student and took custody of him.
Dispatch also informed officers that the driver had no valid license.
She was charged with endangering the life or health of a child and resisting a peace officer. She was also cited for speeding, fleeing and attempting to elude police, for having no valid driver’s license and operating an uninsured motor vehicle.
Fighting whoever’s convenient
An extremely intoxicated Forest Park man was arrested at 4:36 p.m. March 7 after he began punching a 29-year-old man in the face repeatedly, even after an officer ordered him to stop.
The officer on patrol noticed the offender had a strong odor of alcohol on his breath when he told him to stop attacking the 29-year-old man.
When the officer spoke with the victim, he said he was trying to help the offender resist another unknown subject, who was attacking the offender.
But the offender, in his drunken state, mistook the 29-year-old for his original attacker and began punching him.
The offender was issued a citation for public fighting and given a May 6 court date.
Charged with delivering drugs
Forest Park police charged three men with dealing cannabis following a traffic stop on March 4 at 2:50 p.m.
Police pulled over a 2013 Dodge Sedan on Roosevelt Road and Elgin Avenue and ordered the three occupants, 34-year-old Charles Jackson, 24-year-old Elbert Farris and 27-year-old Alexander Dumas, all of Chicago, out of the vehicle after they smelled marijuana coming from the vehicle.
Officers reported recovering 42 plastic bags, containing a total of 65 grams of cannabis, from the vehicle.
The three men were all charged with delivery of cannabis over 30 grams.
Catalytic converters stolen
A catalytic converter was reported stolen from a 2003 Pontiac Sedan at 11:42 a.m. March 4 in the 300 block of Desplaines Avenue.
Upon arrival, officers met with the 37-year-old victim, who said unknown subjects had stolen the device between 6 p.m. on March 3 and 8:20 a.m. on March 4 while it was parked in the south parking lot of her apartment building.
At the time of the report, the victim had already taken the car to the mechanic shop to have it repaired.
Costs of repair are unknown at this time.
Unknown offenders used a cutting tool to steal a catalytic converter from a 2006 Honda Carryall between 11 p.m. on March 3 and 6 a.m. on March 4 in the 7600 block of Monroe Street.
The owner, 39, reported the converter stolen at 9:05 a.m. March 4.
He told officers that the estimated cost to repair the damage was $4,000.
Retail Theft
A 19-year-old Oak Park woman was arrested at 3:12 p.m. on March 2 after she tried to steal $49 worth of items from the Forest Park Walmart, 1300 Desplaines Ave.
Upon arrival, officers met with Walmart loss prevention officers, who said they saw the woman on surveillance video take a cellphone and laundry detergent and exit the store without paying.
She was detained by the loss prevention officers until police arrived.
Police officers ran a name check on the woman and discovered she had an active warrant out for her arrest for possession of cannabis from the Berwyn Police Department.
The woman was processed on the warrant and charged with one misdemeanor count of retail theft.
She was able to post bond on both charges and was released.
These items were obtained from police reports filed by the Forest Park Police Department, from March 2 to March 8, 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 Nicholas Samuel
