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A Look At How Police Are Cracking Down On Stay-At-Home Order Scofflaws

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Some people just aren't listening when it comes to the stay-at-home order.

Some lined up outside liquor stores, while others crowded city parks. So the city is cracking down once again.

CBS 2's Tara Molina looked into the new regulations in place and how Chicago Police were already enforcing them Wednesday night.

On Tuesday, a total of 345 groups were broken up. Two men were arrested for disorderly conduct and failure to obey a lawful order to disperse – one was 18, the other 25.

By police district, the 15th (Austin) District on the city's West Side had the most at 105, followed by the 11th (Harrison) District, also on the West Side, with 75 orders and both arrests, and the 12th (Near West) District with 30.

And once again, that was just Tuesday alone.

Grady lives in the Near West Police District.

"This is the time to stay home," he said.

Grady has seen issues firsthand, just this past week.

"I just saw a lot of people in the dog park," he said.

The dog park is a small, fenced-in area within Skinner Park, 1331 W. Adams St.

"I saw 17 or 18 people in that park," Grady said.

He reported issues to the city.

"Telling people they can go for a walk doesn't mean that they can hang out in the park or play a round of hoops with four or five of their friends. It's just not safe right now," Grady said. "And I do think people could do without dog parks for a week or two."

And safety is being enforced now.

Since the stay at home order started, Chicago police have given 2,033 dispersal orders to residents breaking the rules.

On Wednesday, Mayor Lori Lightfoot announced a temporary Public Health Order that stops all liquor sales after 9 p.m. to prevent groups gathering outside stores that sell it - like they have across the city.

The order will be in effect as long as Gov. JB Pritzker's stay-at-home order is in effect in Illinois.

"We all need food and essentials and brief walks. This is addressing the issue of people going beyond that. People congregating," Lightfoot said. "Just yesterday, the CPD issued hundreds of dispersal orders. Utterly unacceptable. It's a burden on resources. We will take further actions."

Chicago Police will enforce the liquor curfew order, and non-compliance can mean fines, arrests, and stripping a business of its liquor license.

So far, Chicago police have ticketed 11 people for ignoring dispersal orders and violating the Stay at Home Order.
Each of them faces fines up to $5,500.

 

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