Free Republic

CHICAGO (WLS) -- Chicago police have charged a 19-year-old man they say fatally shot two teens in the South Shore neighborhood after they asked how tall he was. Police say Laroy Battle, 19, opened fire on two teens in an alley in the 7900-block of South Luella Avenue around 5 p.m. on Saturday, June 20. According to Deputy Chief of Detectives Brendan Deenihan, the shooting took place after the two teens and a friend had a brief encounter with Battle, whom they did not know, in a corner store. "The victims commented, because, since Battle is quite tall, and they...

An Englewood man is accused of killing two teenagers last weekend after they noted how tall he was while they bought candy at a gas station in South Shore. Laroy Battle, 19, was charged with two counts of first-degree murder and possession of a controlled substance, Deputy Chief Brendan Deenihan said at a news conference Thursday. Jasean Francis, 17, and Charles Riley, 16, were “very good kids from really excellent families,” Deenihan said. They had gone to a gas station Saturday afternoon in the 7900 block of South Luella with a third friend to buy candy when they ran into...

After peaceful protests of the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd were marred by widespread vandalism and looting, city officials announced they would pay up to $1.2 million to three private security firms to avoid a repeat of last weekend’s mayhem. Over 100 private security guards from Monterrey Security, AGB Investigative Services and Illinois Security Professionals will be dispatched to retail corridors across the city - with a particular focus on the South and West sides, city officials said. The private guards will not be armed and will not have police powers, but are meant to be “another set of...