Carol Stream to crack down on fireworks

Shooting bottle rockets or lighting firecrackers in Carol Stream could cost $250 or more, thanks to a new fine passed by village officials.

In an effort to stamp out Fourth of July revelers using illegal fireworks, village trustees this week passed a local law which allows police officers to write a $250 ticket to anyone caught with fireworks.

If the ticket isn't paid within 10 days, the scofflaws will be required to attend a court hearing and pay a fine ranging from $500 to $1,000.

Aurora officials passed a similar local law last week, which allows police officers to write $250 fines to anyone caught with illegal fireworks. The fines increase by $100 increments for repeat offenders each time they're caught.

While fireworks are prohibited in Illinois, police and village officials say they have a hard time enforcing the law because of the sheer volume of complaints they receive over the July 4 holiday.

Last year, Carol Stream police officially responded to 157 fireworks-related complaints, a fraction of the number of calls police believe were actually placed to 911 operators.

Officers are only dispatched if the people calling to complain are willing to identify themselves and sign a complaint form.

"By the time some of our officers even get there, the (fireworks revelers) are gone," Mayor Frank Saverino said. "We want to make them aware we're going to be watching."

Saverino said he personally listened to several complaint calls from last year.

In one instance, police dispatchers received a call of a person lighting off fireworks near the site of where police and firefighters were battling an apartment fire.

"Our officers are trying to keep the streets open for emergency crews in the neighborhood, and meanwhile we're getting calls of this guy who's blocking off the street with his own personal fireworks display," Saverino said. "We need to start putting the hammer down on that sort of behavior."