12 more teens arrested in Easter Sunday “large groups” downtown

Chicago police today said twelve juveniles were arrested during an Easter Sunday edition of “large groups,” the euphemism that city officials use when dozens to hundreds of teenagers overtake parts of the downtown area, spawning fights, batteries, and occasional robberies.

Sunday’s arrests began around 6:15 p.m. in a usual hot spot: The intersection of Chicago Avenue and State Street.

“They’re all fighting,” an officer announced into police radio as a fresh trainload of teens arrived in the station just steps from the Magnificent Mile. About seven arrests were made in the minutes that followed.

By 7 p.m., another “large group” had formed in the Loop, with 20 teens reportedly fighting near the Chicago Theater. Other groups were reported near Millennium Park and along Wabash Avenue south of the Chicago River.

Police said most of the arrests were for battery and failure to disperse. At least one person was charged with aggravated battery of a police officer.

At least 73 people, mostly juveniles, have been arrested in “large group” incidents downtown during April, according to records maintained by CWBChicago.

Downtown Chicago “Large Group” Incidents
Date Primary Area Est. Crowd Size Juvenile Arrests Adult Arrests Link to coverage Link to coverage
June 9, 2012 Magnificent Mile 7 1 Story 1
March 30, 2013 Magnificent Mile 300-400 28 0 Story 1 Story 2
May 30, 2015 Boystown 100 0 0 Story 1 Story 2
May 5, 2018 Magnificent Mile 300+ 2 0 Story 1 Story 2
May 26-27, 2018 Magnificent Mile 19 1 Story 1
Jun. 1, 2018 Streeterville/Lakefront 10 0 0 Story 1
Aug. 29, 2018 Wrigleyville 10 0 Story 1 Story 2
Nov. 23, 2018 Magnificent Mile 2 3 Story 1
Dec. 29, 2018 Magnificent Mile Up to 60 4 1 Story 1 Story 2
April 6, 2019 Magnificent Mile 21 0 Story 1 Story 2
April 14, 2019 Loop / Millennium Park Up to 200 2 0 Story 1 Story 2
April 17, 2019 Mag Mile/Loop / Mill Pk 500 32 6 Story 1
April 21, 2019 Mag Mile/Loop / Mill Pk 11 1 Story 1
“Large group” incidents are defined as events in which small groups of people join together, often via social media, to form one or more large groups on the public way. This does not include large event gatherings that are formed as part of a scheduled event such as a parade, sporting event, or bar crawl.

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About CWBChicago 4272 Articles
CWBChicago was created in 2013 by five residents of Wrigleyville and Boystown who had grown disheartened with inaccurate information that was being provided at local Community Policing (CAPS) meetings. Our coverage area has expanded since then to cover Lincoln Park, River North, The Loop, Uptown, and other North Side Areas. But our mission remains unchanged: To provide original public safety reporting with better context and greater detail than mainstream media outlets. Our editorial email address is news@cwbchicago.com