Crime? Pfffft!

In Cook County:
Felon in possession of a stolen firearm.  No FOID or CCW.  That's what? 4 possible charges at least?

Withers was taken into custody and charged with aggravated unlawful use of a weapon, a class 2 felony.

Well that's something.  But then the stupid.

During a bond court appearance on Saturday, Withers received an I-bond and was released on his own recognizance.

That means no bail money. He was released by promising to show up. 

While in Chicago they're pushing making it a crime/fine-able offense to text/talk while crossing the street w/ a $90-$500 fine. 

We can see the obvious danger to society here.

Compare and Contrast: Talking Points vs Reality

So the usual pundits are making the annual  push for additional licensing/regulation/oversight of gun shops because Chicago is a sh!t-hole. 

A sweeping gun trace report to be publicly released by the city on Sunday showed nearly one quarter of guns recovered at crime scenes over a recent four-year period came from just 10 Chicago-area businesses.....

 Chicago police Superintendent Eddie Johnson called on state lawmakers to approve legislation to more aggressively regulate gun dealers in Illinois, pointing to a newly released trove of data that shows many guns recovered by police in connection with crimes can be traced back to licensed gun stores in the Chicago area.

Not 'Chicago' proper because Chicago has no gun shops but 'Chicago area'.  SCC tears this 'report' to shreds.   So yeah.  Blame the gun shops.  Now here's the clincher.  What happens when someone is actually caught and convicted for 'straw purchasing' or other gun related crimes? 

This:

Simone Mousheh, 23, of the Chicago suburb of Mount Prospect, will have to complete 15 days of community service in the Cook County Sheriff’s Work Alternative Program and 12 months probation after pleading guilty to illegal transfer of firearms last week, as reported by the Daily Herald.
Mousheh was arrested last September and charged with four felonies after an investigation by the Chicago Police Firearm Investigation Team concluded she had bought handguns through the benefit of her state-issued Firearms Owners Identification card and then illegally resold them.

Four felonies.  At least 3 guns sold to criminals.  1 yr probation.

OK. How about the theft and resale to criminals of 100 guns? 

10 yrs.  W/ Illinois' 'day for day' system, he'll be out in 5 or less.

But it's the fault of the gun shops that violent, repeat criminals are out on the streets and being armed by other repeat criminals who get slaps on the wrist and low, if any, bail. Tell me again how it's all about 'safety'. Tell me again how it's all about 'common-sense'. Tell me again how all of this is 'reasonable'. 

Crime In Chicago: One More Reason Why

You know that saying used by gun nuts and derided by gun control activists "Enforce the laws on the books"?

 Case in point..

Simone Mousheh, 23, pleaded guilty Thursday to the illegal transfer of firearms in exchange for 12 months probation and 15 days in the Cook County sheriff's work alternative program, according to court records. S.W.A.P. allows judges to sentence nonviolent offenders to manual labor in lieu of jail time. She was also ordered to pay $679 in fines.

So she bought the guns, reported them 'stolen', then sold them to known gang-bangers and prohibited persons, one of which was recovered from a juvenile offender.

Yeah, that'll teach her. I'm sure all the other straw purchasers are shaking in their boots.

Aren't you glad that we're so well protected by the State and can rely on their protection from criminals?

'Snuffy' Phleger Needs To Turn Around To Find The Source Of Crime

So the 'Father' known for threatening the lives of politicians and firearm shop owners marched on Chicago to protest the large numbers of homicides last year.  Where did he march?  Why the 'Magnificent Mile', a high end, low crime shopping district in the city.  Nowhere near where the overwhelming majority of murders are occurring. They carried crosses engraved w/ the names of the victims.  The article highlights four of them.

 Regular readers of this blog probably know what's coming.

The first homicide of 2016, Deandre Holiday.  This was splashed over all the papers. The February before he was arrested for having a gun w/ a defaced serial #. I'm going to bet no FOID or CCW as well.

A relative of his, Derrick Canady, was killed in an alley at night in August. He was on parole for armed robbery and had a history of vehicle theft and drugs.

Another victim, Isaiah Hurley, was shot in the middle of the night in October.  He was on parole for multiple drug felonies and was a documented gang member.

Only one of the four victims highlighted in the story did not have a criminal record and he was killed by a carload of gangbangers.

So 75% of the 'victims' were living the 'thug life' and died the way they lived.  The last was the only real victim and it's due to the violent gang sub-culture rampant, and encouraged, in the city.

To find out why these homicides keep happening, Phleger needs to turn around and start questioning the families of the ones following him. They knew their sons etc. were acting stupidly. How many of them instead were blaming the police, the NRA, and anyone else instead of seeing reality?

Cook County's Xmas Gift To Criminals

The Cook County State's Attorney's Office has a new policy concerning retail thefts.
Felony Review will not be approving felony charges unless the property in question is valued over $1000.
However, if felony charges are based upon the offender's prior criminal history, then charges will not be approved unless the offender has ten or more prior felony convictions.

Go ahead and walk out of the store w/ a couple of 4K tv's.  It's only a misdemeanor now (and probably pled down to double secret probation).

I'm sure this is going to work out just wonderfully.

H/T to SCC

No Sympathy

From the latest Brady "We need money" email:

In December, we remember the anniversaries of the shootings in San Bernardino and at Sandy Hook Elementary School, as well as my own son Tyler who lost his life to senseless and preventable gun violence on December 22, 2012. I could let all this tragedy get me down, but instead I'm inspired to fight even harder to end gun violence in America, so no parent is in my shoes.

The lady's name is Delphine Cherry, the Chicagoland Brady Campaign Chapter President.  I did a little digging.  In 1992, her daughter, Tyesa Cherry, was killed.  From a Trib story:

As she left Chestnut Station Theaters, Tyesa Cherry was struck in the head and killed by a stray bullet from a 9 mm semiautomatic handgun. The gun was allegedly fired by a 14-year-old gang member who was fighting with another youth while waiting in line.

This was during the height of Chicago's handgun ban. The movie?  Juice.  A 1992 film about violent gang thugs killing each other.  And the theatre?

During the early-1990’s, the theatre gained notoriety when a young woman was shot and killed in front of the theatre, and the theatre was known throughout the 1990’s of notorious for gang activity and the quality of films went down.  

20 years later, her son was killed:

Hazel Crest Village Manager James Whigham said Tyler Randolph was targeted by an assailant who walked up to him Saturday night and shot him to death about 8:15 p.m. in the 3500 block of Birchwood Drive. Randolph was taken to a hospital but was pronounced dead a short time later at a hospital, Whigham said.

They go on:

Whigham said the public is not in danger after the attack because they are working under the assumption that the shooter was a "known offender."
"It doesn't appear to be a random act," Whigham said.

Why wasn't it 'random'?

Cherry says that in 2011, Tyler received a phone call to pick up a friend in need. The friend, she says, had stolen a purse outside of a Family Dollar. After Tyler picked up that friend and brought him back to the Cherry house, Hazel Crest police soon arrived. While Tyler faced the police at the front door, the friend escaped out the back door. With Tyler’s phone confiscated by police, they later locate that friend as well as Tyler and arrest them both, according to Cherry.

So at the very least he was an accomplice to a crime and was involved in the local criminal culture.

So the mother's response is to join a group that does everything it can to restrict and punish those who follow the laws, get the licenses, training, etc.

This is just one reason why I don't take 'Gun Safety' groups seriously.

Oppa Gang-nam Style

(sorry for the pun)

So more Chicago antics.

Railyards are being targeted for mass firearm theft. The BATFE 'encouraged' local aldercreatures' not to talk about it for 'security'. Now it's happened again. Third time in three years resulting in dozens of guns now in the hands of gang bangers. 

And speaking of gang bangers, we can fully expect more 'protests' over another honor student being ventilated by the police.  They didn't find a gun on him but the police report him tossing something to a group nearby which quickly dispersed. Here's a FB profile pic of Dindu:



Any questions?

Dindu Nuffin/BLM vs CPD/CFD

Two Narratives:

Police and Firefighters:
Group in a car on the way from a gang funeral block a fire department driveway and attack the firefighters/police when told to move.  Dindu pulls out a gun and refuses to put it down, getting ventilated for his troubles.

Family:  Off Duty Cop cuts off car and tries to run it off the road, pointing his gun at various people in the car and shooting Dindu for no reason.

Lots of problems w/ the family's story(ies... they change a bit depending on who's talking).

He had a CCW?  He was from Indy.  IL does not recognize IN CCW so did he have one of the insanely expensive 'Non-Resident' versions?  Did he have an IN CCW and didn't know IL didn't recognize it? Is the family flat out lying?

If the first version is more accurate, why was he brandishing a firearm on a firefighter?

If the second version is more accurate, how did the firefighters get involved and get injuries?
Was Dindu dragged out of the car and shot as one person said, was he shot while pulling out his gun to defend the family member who was being threatened by the off duty, or standing w/ his hands up? Which is it? 

Of course the family immediately starts calling for the 'Ghetto Lottery'. BLM shows up, tweets from them talking about 'assassination' and 'execution' while canvassing the neighborhood for 'witnesses' (iow, showing blurry video to anyone they can find). Again, stories change depending on who they're interviewing. In one, they're sitting in a Burger King, minding their own business while being harassed, in another, they're outside w/ banners across the street from 'Blue Lives Matter' flags.

Unfortunately for them, Mt. Greenwood is also known as 'Coptown' and the BLM presence was not taken well.

The varying stories:

SSC
ABC
Tribune
DNAinfo
Fox32
NBC

UPDATE:  The various family stories about him being dragged out of his car or being shot w/ his hands up?  Not so much:



and now that the family's been caught lying, they've lawyered up and clammed up. 

Of course the other 50 shootings that took place across the city over the weekend don't matter.

The Stupid Is Strong With This One @SonyaMHarper

It's always entertaining to see a hack politician, one not even elected but 'appointed', file a bill that started digging for 'dumb' but didn't stop until it was offered beef w/ broccoli and stir fried rice. 

That would be the case w/ Sonya Harper (D-IL-6) and her Ammo Serialization bill HB6615.

Some of the traditional highlights.
- licensing of ammo dealers (w/ fees of course)
- State police run registry (more taxes/fees + 1/2 cent / round) of all ammo sold and to whom.
- banning of all non-serialized ammo including brought from out of state.
- reloaders/molders have to develop serialization

- mandates the serial # has to be read on the bullet 'AFTER' firing.
- lots and lots of penalties (of course)

She's getting eaten alive on her FB page.
She represents the Englewood neighborhood in Chicago. One of the most violent places in the country.
More at Bearing Arms. 

Play Stupid Games

So woman from Chicago 'burbs buys guns legally and then knowingly sells them to gang bangers to make some extra money and gets caught.  Based on US law, she could be up for 30-40 years.

Any bets on what she will actually get?  SCC says probation.

There are also some really stupid comments by the CPD in the article.  Have fun.

'Snuffy' Phleger's Anger Management Issues

As he inflames racial tensions in Chicago:

"Go to hell Angelo! How dare you tell police to not do overtime and make our streets less safe with less officers. We're already short of police officers." Pfleger said.

Yep, It's the police's fault that the streets are 'less safe', not the actions of the violent criminals that Snuffy and his ilk have been enabling for years. 

No wonder he's anti-gun. 

Chicago (Area)

Neighbors in Hazel Crest are wondering why anyone would want to kill the two little girls, India Neely, 3, and Elle Neely, 10, Fox 32 Chicago reported.

The answer? 

  Police said Neely may have been the target, WLS-TV reported. His lengthy rap sheet included drug-related arrests.

So he associated w/ criminals and his family paid the price. 

Obviously the fault of the GOP and NRA.