It turns out some barhoppers who disregarded calls for “social distancing” to tear up Wrigleyville for its annual St. Patrick’s party last weekend were even more reckless than we previously reported.
The next day, base on initial information and preliminary police reports, we estimated that ten revelers were arrested during the annual Clark Street bacchanal.
We were way off.
Final data from the Chicago Police Department shows sixteen arrests were made during the event.
Arrests during the Wrigleyville St. Pat’s party fell sharply in 2016, 2017, and 2018, but the past two years have shown increases. Despite significantly thinner crowds, this year’s COVID-19 dampened celebration chalked nearly as many arrests as the enthusiastic party of 2015.
Police made the first arrest at 4:14 p.m. after a security guard at McDonald’s, 3610 North Clark, detained a man who he allegedly saw counting bags of cocaine on the restaurant sidewalk. It was all downhill from there.
Two men were charged with battery following an incident on the 3400 block of North Clark around 7:30 p.m.
Three were arrested after a brawl spilled into the middle of Clark Street at 8:54 p.m. Thirty minutes later, three more were arrested at the same spot for doing the same thing. Someone managed to get robbed during the second incident.
Police arrested a motorist for DUI as he weaved away from the party on Addison Street shortly after 10 p.m.
Another solo fighter was arrested around 1 a.m., followed by the arrests of four more people who were running and fighting in the middle of Clark Street — at the exact same spot where the two previous group arrests were made.
The final arrest came at 4:06 a.m. after a man threatened staff members and refused to leave a bar on the 3700 block of Clark.
