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After Police Employee Killed in Morgan Park, Neighbors Take to the Street

By Howard Ludwig | September 18, 2015 6:53am
 Eric Washington, the Chicago Police Department’s Deputy Chief of Community Policing, addressed a crowd of concerned neighbors on 115th and Church Streets on Thursday night.
Eric Washington, the Chicago Police Department’s Deputy Chief of Community Policing, addressed a crowd of concerned neighbors on 115th and Church Streets on Thursday night.
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DNAinfo/Howard A. Ludwig

MORGAN PARK — Sirens and flashing blue lights called a meeting of concerned neighbors to order Thursday night at 115th and Church streets in Morgan Park.

The meeting called, "OPERATION: Wake-Up!," happened less than 24 hours after John Buckner, 59, was shot and killed while unloading groceries on the block.

Alfonza Wysinger, Chicago Police first deputy superintendent, said the shooters were three teens riding bikes, and police are using video footage and reaching out to the community to find out more about the shooting.

Buckner was a maintenance man for the Chicago Police Department. Another victim, a 41-year-old man, was hospitalized after being shot in the left ear during the incident, Estrada said.

Neighbors Reclaim Church Street After Shooting
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DNAinfo/Howard A. Ludwig

Neither victim appears to have been the intended target of the shooting, police said.

About 60 concerned residents and roughly a dozen police officers from the Morgan Park District shut down Church Street at the intersection with 115th Thursday night.

Glen Brooks, the Chicago Police Department's Area South coordinator, facilitated the 7 p.m. meeting and called upon neighbors to get involved by attending CAPS meetings. He also recommended forming relationships with neighbors as well as the police both in attendance and on patrol.

"Somewhere around here, we know those boys are sitting around looking at us," Brooks said into a megaphone.

Chicago Police Cmdr. Mark Harmon reiterated these statements, saying police can't prevent such tragedies on their own — nor can neighbors. It takes a joint effort between residents and police to maintain safety.

"Together, we are a stronger voice for the community," Harmon said.

He and other officers went door to door, encouraging neighbors to attend the meeting on Thursday night. Harmon added that the particular stretch of Church Street had been quiet for about a year prior to the shooting.

"We are up and down these streets every day. We are not always loud, but we are here," Harmon said.

Police Officer Carressa Northcross works in the CAPS office in Morgan Park and said the latest meeting for the beat that includes the 11500 block of South Church Street had only 10 attendees.

She encouraged residents to participate in the meetings as well as get their children involved in the department's peer jury and other programs.

"When you have a problem, it is not just your problem. It is the entire block's problem," Northcross said. "We teach you how to problem solve."

Natalie Bibbs, 17, lives just a few houses down from Buckner. The senior at Morgan Park High School said everywhere she goes since the shooting she sees children on bikes and worries.

"I'm scared to walk to school now," Bibbs said.

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