Residents need to be better informed on crime

Many, presumably by their own inattention, are uninformed about the extent of the local crime surge, uninformed about what’s being done and uninformed about how they can better protect themselves. For example, I-55 is a thoroughfare for drug traffic and County Line Road is a direct access point into Burr Ridge and Hinsdale. There is heightened proximity to opportunistic crime and it’s increasing. The more the opportunity, the bigger the problem is becoming for everyone. The escalating car thefts, burglaries and robberies are not encouraging. At some point, something unexpected and tragic will occur.

If a resident who lives on North Lincoln had not told me there was a police pursuit of a stolen car on North Lincoln Street (and forwarded the police video), I would not have known about it. One of our friends sent an early notice to a number of residents about the armed robbery at Standard Market. A dentist’s office on Burlington in Clarendon Hills told patients that the staff was greeted in the early morning hours a few weeks ago with a stolen car and thieves going through garages.

Residents need to be fully informed and taking precautions to mitigate what look like easy targets for gang activities and the exacerbation of the problem. A town hall style meeting would advance that ball and now is the time. — Gerry Sweeney, Burr Ridge