Hundreds Pack Into Community Meeting On Boystown Violence As Neighborhood Tensions Flare

Story by Kate Sosin, courtesy of the Windy City Times

In the midst of a community uproar over violent crime in Lakeview, the much-anticipated July 6 CAPS 2324 and 2331 meeting, drew nearly 800 people and a debate so heated that it often turned into a screaming match across auditorium aisles.

Nearly everyone who attended the meeting seemed to leave the Inter-American Magnet School, 851 W. Waveland, bleary-eyed and exhausted hours later.

The CAPS ( Community Alternative Policing Strategy ) meeting, which is held regularly, was widely attended due to a string of recent violent attacks that have increasingly concerned residents who say that the neighborhood is unsafe. The most recent attack, a July 3 stabbing, drew national attention because it was caught on video.

Residents called on 23rd Dist. Commander Kathleen Boehmer and 44th Ward Ald. Tom Tunney to address what they said was a rise in crime.

"Boystown is a danger zone," said Kevin O'Brien, a Lakeview resident, who also chastised Boehmer and Tunney for what he called an inadequate public response to the issues.

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