Elgin police promise emphasis on keeping residents informed

Elgin police said they will put a renewed emphasis on keeping residents informed, but won't be issuing media releases every time there are reports of shots fired, as one councilman had asked.

Councilman John Prigge asked Police Chief Jeff Swoboda to do so at the city council meeting earlier this week. Swoboda said that's not necessary, because residents can find that information on crimereports.com, which also lets people sign up for email and text alerts specific to their neighborhoods.

The police department routinely issues media releases about shootings with victims, as well as major arrests and serious traffic accidents. Media releases also are posted on the department's Facebook page.

Other council members didn't seem inclined to push for any changes.

However, officers who respond to shootings will be reminded to give information to residents on the scene whenever possible, Swoboda said Friday.

"In the old days we used to say, 'Nothing to see here,' but we're going to remind officers that they can take the time to explain, if they are not busy chasing someone, to explain what is going on and address any concerns of safety in the neighborhood."

The department will also monitor social media more closely and quickly address any misinformation about shootings by posting information on the department's Facebook page, Swoboda said. "These are all things we do already, but maybe we can try to do it more diligently."

Prigge said Friday he was pleased police were receptive to the issue. "They heard the residents' concerns that I presented them on their behalf."

Resident Erin Curtin said she talked to Prigge about her difficulties in getting information about a shooting near her house earlier this month. Her husband was in the backyard while she and her son were out for a walk, and they all heard the gunshots, she said.

Later, they found out the shots were fired between two cars, but because there were no reported victims, there was no public release of information from police, Curtin said.

"I was shocked that this wouldn't have made it (in a release)," said Curtin, who also filed a Freedom of Information Act to obtain the police report. The information on crimereports.com - which didn't show up for almost two days, she said - is very scant, she said. "We would have liked something to go publicly so it was easily accessible for us."

As a result of the shooting, she and her husband decided to speed up the sale of their house, Curtin said.

Police agencies pay a fee to subscribe to crimereports.com, which is accessible for free by the public. Some police departments, including those in Evanston and Evansville, Indiana, post on their websites maps of the location of shots fired calls each month.