Explore The NRA Universe Of Websites

APPEARS IN News

Chicago Politicians, Whistling Past the Graveyard

Tuesday, January 18, 2022

Chicago Politicians, Whistling Past the Graveyard

It’s no secret that crime in Chicago has reached levels not seen in decades. Crime statistics released by the Chicago Police Department (CPD) for October 2021 show significant increases in incidents of serious crime compared to the same time in 2020, along with double-digit declines in arrest numbers. A local news source notes that last year, Chicago reported more homicides than any other city in the United States. A further worrying new development in the Windy City is “flash mob robbery crews” – two or three carloads of people traveling to commit “quick bursts” of robberies and other crimes while roving city streets, apparently “motivated by the thrill of scaring and hurting people.”

Desperate times call for desperate measures. Chicago Alderman Michele Smith (D-43) is promoting “WhistleSTOP,” a program dating back to the 1970s. The rules of this crime-fighting approach, according to Smith, are first, to get a loud whistle, preferably the kind used in sports or camping. “If you find yourself in a suspicious situation or witness a crime, blow your whistle. If you hear a whistle, call the police, then move towards the source while blowing your own whistle.” Do not blow your whistle if you believe doing so would put you in danger, “particularly from an armed criminal.” Victims of crime are urged to cooperate and not resist, and (Smith says with a laugh) “certainly do not blow your whistle at someone who has a gun pointed at your head.” Using whistles “allows people to come to the victim’s aid, forces the offender to flee, and helps the police pinpoint the location of the crime,” Smith claims.

It strains credulity to expect this will put a dent in crime or discourage Chicago’s brazen criminals (here, here, here and here, for instance).

A criminal certainly has no reason to fear harm from a whistle, and simply shouting for help would be at least as effective (and possibly less ambiguous). The rules themselves foreclose whistling where there’s an armed perpetrator or other potential danger to the person, or by a victim of a crime in progress. The crime-busting aspect of Smith’s plan also appears to rest on police officers being on hand to respond when summoned, a shaky assumption at best. One source indicates that Chicago’s police force lost almost 900 officers to retirements, transfers and resignations last year; another 400 to 500 officers are due to leave this month. Immediate staffing levels have been further reduced by COVID, with thousands of officers now out on medical leave.

The futility of Smith’s program is arguably irrelevant, anyways. Criminals who do find themselves “whistlestopped” into an apprehension and arrest are likely to be back on the street in short order, even when charged with violent crimes. Cook County’s chief judge recently turned down Chicago mayor Lori Lightfoot’s request for an immediate moratorium on releasing certain offenders on pre-trial electronic monitoring. Lightfoot had asked that offenders facing charges of “murder, attempted murder, aggravated gun possession, felons in possession, sex crimes, illegal gun possession, vehicular carjacking, kidnapping or attempted kidnapping or other crimes of violence” not be released on electronic monitoring while awaiting trial, citing the “cumulative effect of having almost 2,300 violent, dangerous offenders” (including 90 murder suspects) back in the community.

CWBChicago, a local news outlet, has highlighted a few instances of this “cumulative effect,” as in the case of a seven-time convicted felon released on electronic monitoring after multiple serious felony charges, including aggravated assault with a deadly weapon, who later allegedly set his ex-girlfriend’s house on fire while she and five children were inside because he’d threatened to kill her.

Advocating quaint “crime prevention” strategies that don’t prevent crime is completely in line with a “whistle past the graveyard” approach to public safety, one that also expects “defunded” police to continue to enforce laws that will not be prosecuted and encourages “no bail” district attorneys to downgrade or drop charges against violent or serious repeat offenders.

Manhattan’s new District Attorney Alvin Bragg, for instance, had instructed staff not to prosecute certain crimes at all, to use a “presumption of pre-trial non-incarceration for every case” except as listed, and not “seek a carceral [prison] sentence” other than for the handful of serious offenses specified in his memo. A career criminal arrested last year on several felony burglary charges involving businesses in Brooklyn and Manhattan was already delighted that existing bail reforms meant he was released as not eligible for cash bail; undoubtedly, he will be even more elated with this latest progressive approach to prosecution and punishment.

Alderman Michele Smith, of course, is free to hand out whistles so her constituents can blow criminals away. For our part, we’d like to recommend an alternative quaint and old-timey method for protecting oneself and deterring criminals, and suggest that Chicago’s law abiding residents join the millions of Americans who last year became first-time gun owners or new concealed carry permittees.

IN THIS ARTICLE
Illinois Chicago crime
TRENDING NOW
Third Circuit Strikes Some New Jersey Carry Restrictions in NRA Case

Thursday, September 11, 2025

Third Circuit Strikes Some New Jersey Carry Restrictions in NRA Case

Yesterday, the Third Circuit Court of Appeals issued an opinion in Siegel v. Platkin, striking some of the carry restrictions New Jersey enacted in response to the NRA’s landmark Supreme Court victory, New York State Rifle & ...

Due Process: The Backbone of Legal Legitimacy

News  

Monday, September 8, 2025

Due Process: The Backbone of Legal Legitimacy

Close observers of the gun debate often see references to due process.

Gun Control “Journalist” Says the Quiet Part Out Loud

News  

Monday, September 8, 2025

Gun Control “Journalist” Says the Quiet Part Out Loud

Pure gun control. As in disarmament and banning of firearms. It’s rare that anti-gunners get straight to the exact point that we have been warning of for decades. 

The Desperate Deflection to the “Red State Murder Problem”

News  

Monday, September 8, 2025

The Desperate Deflection to the “Red State Murder Problem”

California Governor Gavin Newsom (D) may have thought he had scored against President Donald Trump in a recent war of words over rampant crime and the deployment of federal law enforcement agents to Democratic-led cities

NRA Files Amicus Brief Urging SCOTUS to Hear Challenge to Washington’s Magazine Ban

Monday, September 8, 2025

NRA Files Amicus Brief Urging SCOTUS to Hear Challenge to Washington’s Magazine Ban

Today, the National Rifle Association filed an amicus brief urging the U.S. Supreme Court to grant certiorari in a case challenging Washington State’s ban on firearm magazines that hold more than 10 rounds.

Illinois: Governor Signs Mandatory Firearm Storage Law

Wednesday, September 3, 2025

Illinois: Governor Signs Mandatory Firearm Storage Law

Earlier this month, Governor JB Pritzker signed Senate Bill 8 into law. This legislation imposes new mandatory firearm storage requirements on law-abiding gun owners.  

Update: North Carolina House Reschedules Veto Override Vote

Tuesday, August 26, 2025

Update: North Carolina House Reschedules Veto Override Vote

Today, the House rescheduled the veto override vote on Senate Bill 50, Freedom to Carry NC, to Monday, September 22. 

Minnesota: Senate Gun Violence Prevention Working Group Meeting on Monday

Friday, September 12, 2025

Minnesota: Senate Gun Violence Prevention Working Group Meeting on Monday

On Monday, September 15th, the Minnesota Senate will hold a special working group on "gun violence prevention."

Washington Post Admits that Anti-gun Lawfare “Cannot be the Solution” to Crime

News  

Monday, March 17, 2025

Washington Post Admits that Anti-gun Lawfare “Cannot be the Solution” to Crime

In a turnabout worthy of Invasion of the Body Snatchers, The Washington Post (WAPO) published an editorial last Tuesday criticizing the gun control movement for ignoring the Protection of Lawful Commerce in Arms Act (PLCAA) and pursuing its agenda in ...

Supreme Court Review Sought in NRA-Backed Challenge to California’s Magazine Ban

Friday, August 15, 2025

Supreme Court Review Sought in NRA-Backed Challenge to California’s Magazine Ban

Today, a Petition for Certiorari was filed asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear Duncan v. Bonta, a case—backed by the National Rifle Association and California Rifle & Pistol Association—challenging California’s prohibition on magazines capable of holding ...

MORE TRENDING +
LESS TRENDING -

More Like This From Around The NRA

NRA ILA

Established in 1975, the Institute for Legislative Action (ILA) is the "lobbying" arm of the National Rifle Association of America. ILA is responsible for preserving the right of all law-abiding individuals in the legislative, political, and legal arenas, to purchase, possess and use firearms for legitimate purposes as guaranteed by the Second Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.