The Chicago Crime Commission is an independent,

non-partisan Nonpartisanism is a lack of affiliation with, and a lack of bias towards, a political party. While an Oxford English Dictionary definition of ''partisan'' includes adherents of a party, cause, person, etc., in most cases, nonpartisan refers s ...

civic Civic is something related to a city or municipality. It also can refer to multiple other things: General *Civics, the science of comparative government *Civic engagement, the connection one feels with their larger community *Civic center, a comm ...

watchdog Watchdog or watch dog may refer to: Animals *Guard dog, a dog that barks to alert its owners of an intruder's presence * Portuguese Watch Dog, Cão de Castro Laboreiro, a dog breed * Moscow Watchdog, a breed of dog that was bred in the Soviet ...

organization of business leaders dedicated to educating the public about the dangers of organized criminal activity, especially

organized crime Organized crime (or organised crime) is a category of transnational, national, or local groupings of highly centralized enterprises run by criminals to engage in illegal activity, most commonly for profit. While organized crime is generally th ...

street gangs A gang is a group or society of associates, friends or members of a family with a defined leadership and internal organization that identifies with or claims control over territory in a community and engages, either individually or collectivel ...

and the tools of their trade: drugs,

guns A gun is a ranged weapon designed to use a shooting tube (gun barrel) to launch projectiles. The projectiles are typically solid, but can also be pressurized liquid (e.g. in water guns/cannons, spray guns for painting or pressure washing, ...

public corruption Corruption is a form of dishonesty or a criminal offense which is undertaken by a person or an organization which is entrusted in a position of authority, in order to acquire illicit benefits or abuse power for one's personal gain. Corruption m ...

, money laundering,

identity theft Identity theft occurs when someone uses another person's personal identifying information, like their name, identifying number, or credit card number, without their permission, to commit fraud or other crimes. The term ''identity theft'' was c ...

and

gambling Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of value ("the stakes") on a random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy are discounted. Gambling thus requires three el ...

, founded in 1919. The

police The police are a constituted body of persons empowered by a state, with the aim to enforce the law, to ensure the safety, health and possessions of citizens, and to prevent crime and civil disorder. Their lawful powers include arrest and th ...

, the

judicial system The judiciary (also known as the judicial system, judicature, judicial branch, judiciative branch, and court or judiciary system) is the system of courts that adjudicates legal disputes/disagreements and interprets, defends, and applies the law ...

, politicians,

prosecutors A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the common law adversarial system or the Civil law (legal system), civil law inquisitorial system. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the ...

and citizens rely on the Chicago Crime Commission to provide advice on crime issues and to communicate vital information to the public.

Summary

Founded just before

Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcohol ...

in the

Roaring '20s The Roaring Twenties, sometimes stylized as Roaring '20s, refers to the 1920s decade in music and fashion, as it happened in Western society and Western culture. It was a period of economic prosperity with a distinctive cultural edge in the U ...

, local businessmen formed the Chicago Crime Commission to address the lawlessness prevalent in Chicago during the time. The businessmen who founded the crime commission did not think of themselves as a reform organization but saw crime as business work to which they applied business methods. The backlog of murder cases awaiting trial was reduced, while the public corruption and organized criminal activities of the

Chicago Outfit The Chicago Outfit (also known as the Outfit, the Chicago Mafia, the Chicago Mob, the Chicago crime family, the South Side Gang or The Organization) is an Italian-American organized crime syndicate or crime family based in Chicago, Illinois, ...

were exposed. In 1930, the Commission first brought about the Public Enemies list, with

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

gangster Al Capone as "Public Enemy Number One." The idea of such a list was co-opted by the

FBI The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is the domestic intelligence and security service of the United States and its principal federal law enforcement agency. Operating under the jurisdiction of the United States Department of Justice, t ...

as the

FBI's Ten Most Wanted Fugitives The FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives is a most wanted list maintained by the United States's Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). The list arose from a conversation held in late 1949 between J. Edgar Hoover, Director of the FBI, and William K ...

list. Today, the Commission's primary role is to ensure that business,

government A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is ...

and law enforcement work together to address problems caused by organized criminal enterprises by: * Publishing ''The Gang Book'', a training tool for

law enforcement Law enforcement is the activity of some members of government who act in an organized manner to enforce the law by discovering, deterring, rehabilitating, or punishing people who violate the rules Rule or ruling may refer to: Education ...

on adult Chicago area gangs which includes full color photographs of the "leaders" of "prominent" street gangs as well as their commonly identifiable characteristics (i.e., graffiti and markings, clothing, tattoos, and hand signs or "sets"); * Publishing ''Friend and Foe'', described as "an exhibit of visual materials that highlight some aspects" of the "history of crime, citizen action, and

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

" (Forward, p. iii). The work provides "insight into the "

", public corruption, street gangs, drugs, and the evolution of crime fighting"; * Offering tools for citizens to report public corruption and

crime In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Ca ...

anonymously to the right law enforcement agency through an interactive website and hotline; * Promoting

Project Safe Neighborhoods Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN) is a national initiative by the United States Department of Justice with the help of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF) to reduce gun violence in the United States. The project's aim is to ...

(PSN), a "promising" comprehensive antiviolence initiative. In their national evaluation, McGarrell and colleagues (2010) found cities who implemented PSN experienced an average 4.1 percent decline in violent crime, while non-PSN cities experienced a 0.9 percent decline; * Advising statewide and local

partnerships A partnership is an arrangement where parties, known as business partners, agree to cooperate to advance their mutual interests. The partners in a partnership may be individuals, business entity, businesses, interest-based organizations, schoo ...

on how to improve communications to prevent and respond to everyday

crimes In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Can ...

and organized criminal activities; * Conducting

research Research is " creative and systematic work undertaken to increase the stock of knowledge". It involves the collection, organization and analysis of evidence to increase understanding of a topic, characterized by a particular attentiveness ...

and providing

analysis Analysis ( : analyses) is the process of breaking a complex topic or substance into smaller parts in order to gain a better understanding of it. The technique has been applied in the study of mathematics and logic since before Aristotle (3 ...

on crime issues, specializing in those businesses associated with organized criminal activity; and * Offering a comprehensive organized crime library.

Highlights

* The Chicago Crime Commission spearheaded educating Illinois citizens on the dangers of a government-owned casino as the Illinois Governor and the Illinois General Assembly sought to pass

legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolling, enacting, or promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law it may be known as a bill, and may be broadly referred to ...

creating a Chicago-owned casino, increasing the total number of

casino A casino is a facility for certain types of gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shopping, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos are also known for hosting live entertai ...

s, allowing

slot machines A slot machine (American English), fruit machine (British English) or poker machine ( Australian English and New Zealand English) is a gambling machine that creates a game of chance for its customers. Slot machines are also known pejoratively ...

at the

racetracks A race track (racetrack, racing track or racing circuit) is a facility built for racing of vehicles, athletes, or animals (e.g. horse racing or greyhound racing). A race track also may feature grandstands or concourses. Race tracks are also ...

and massively expanding

throughout

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

. * The Commission's then President, James W. Wagner, testified as an

expert witness An expert witness, particularly in common law countries such as the United Kingdom, Australia, and the United States, is a person whose opinion by virtue of education, training, certification, skills or experience, is accepted by the judge as ...

in the federal government's 2007

prosecution A prosecutor is a legal representative of the prosecution in states with either the common law adversarial system or the Civil law (legal system), civil law inquisitorial system. The prosecution is the legal party responsible for presenting the ...

of Chicago organized crime in the case known as the "Family Secrets" trial. * The Commission monitors the federal prosecutions of Illinois' alleged

pay-to-play Pay-to-play, sometimes pay-for-play or P2P, is a phrase used for a variety of situations in which money is exchanged for services or the privilege to engage in certain activities. The common denominator of all forms of pay-to-play is that one mus ...

political insiders and the general public corruption allegations levied against

government officials An official is someone who holds an office (function or mandate, regardless whether it carries an actual working space with it) in an organization or government and participates in the exercise of authority, (either their own or that of their su ...

throughout

, including the trials involving former

Governor A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

George H. Ryan, his former

Chief-of-Staff The title chief of staff (or head of staff) identifies the leader of a complex organization such as the armed forces, institution, or body of persons and it also may identify a principal staff officer (PSO), who is the coordinator of the supporti ...

, Scott Fawell and current Chicago businessman

Antoin Rezko Antoin Rezko (born 1955) is an American businessman and convict. He was a fundraiser for Illinois Democratic Party (United States), Democratic and Republican Party (United States), Republican politicians. After becoming a major contributor to Rod ...

Publications and archives

Owning one of the oldest and most complete historical

archives An archive is an accumulation of historical records or materials – in any medium – or the physical facility in which they are located. Archives contain primary source documents that have accumulated over the course of an individual or ...

on organized crime in the 20th and 21st century, the Commission provides an important historical record of

criminal activity In ordinary language, a crime is an unlawful act punishable by a state or other authority. The term ''crime'' does not, in modern criminal law, have any simple and universally accepted definition,Farmer, Lindsay: "Crime, definitions of", in Can ...

and public corruption for professional

and

education Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty ...

. ''The Chicago Crime Commission'' maintains current information on crime issues and criminal activities involving organized crime,

gangs A gang is a group or society of associates, friends or members of a family with a defined leadership and internal organization that identifies with or claims control over territory in a community and engages, either individually or collectivel ...

and public corruption. Recent

publications To publish is to make content available to the general public.Berne Conv ...

include: ''The Gang Book'' (2012) and ''Friend and Foe'' (2007). * ''The Gang Book'' is a 272-page overview of adult Chicago area gangs which includes gang "histories", full color photographs of the "leaders" of "prominent" street gangs, as well as their commonly identifiable characteristics (i.e., graffiti and markings, clothing, tattoos, and hand signs or "sets"). Designed as a training tool, the Commission claims to have "donated over 4,000 copies" of the 2012 edition to local and statewide

agencies as well as other "organizations in the criminal justice field". * ''Friend and Foe'' is a 297-page "exhibit of visual materials that highlight some aspects" of the "history of crime, citizen action, and

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

" (Forward, p. iii). The work provides "insight into the "

", public corruption, street gangs, drugs, and the evolution of crime fighting". It includes a decade-by-decade pictorial of

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

's crime problems, included "original photographs, cartoons, ewspaperheadlines, lithographs, fingerprints, drawings" (Forward, p. iii) and "previously unseen documents" from the Commission's historical archive.

Crime reporting

A non-government agency, the Commission acts an intermediary between citizens and law enforcement to help initiate investigations. The Anonymous Public Corruption Reporting Hotline is a web-based public corruption and crime reporting system that gives government employees and concerned citizens an effective way to reach law enforcement anonymously. The Anonymous Crime Reporting Hotline accepts tips on general and gang-related criminal activities.

Public activities

The Chicago Crime Commission presents and sponsors

presentations A presentation conveys information from a speaker to an audience. Presentations are typically demonstrations, introduction, lecture, or speech meant to inform, persuade, inspire, motivate, build goodwill, or present a new idea/product. Present ...

on current law enforcement issues and criminal justice issues, continuing its track record of exposing corruption and organized criminal activities and encouraging public debate on issues of public safety and national security. The Chicago Crime Commission hosts at least four events a year open to the public: (1) a mid-year member luncheon, (2) a golf benefit; (3) an annual dinner benefit; and (4) a holiday luncheon. The Commission accepts*

sponsorship Sponsoring something (or someone) is the act of supporting an event, activity, person, or organization financially or through the provision of products or services. The individual or group that provides the support, similar to a benefactor, is k ...

and event purchases online at http://www.chicagocrimecommission.org (*subject to availability and security clearance).

Funding & Expenses

As a 501(c)(3) charitable organization, the Commission receives

funding Funding is the act of providing resources to finance a need, program, or project. While this is usually in the form of money, it can also take the form of effort or time from an organization or company. Generally, this word is used when a firm use ...

solely from private citizens and businesses committed to improving the quality of

public safety Public security or public safety is the prevention of and protection from events that could endanger the safety and security of the public from significant danger, injury, or property damage. It is often conducted by a state government to ensur ...

in their communities. Per the

Illinois Attorney General The Illinois Attorney General is the highest legal officer of the state of Illinois in the United States. Originally an appointed office, it is now an office filled by statewide election. Based in Chicago and Springfield, Illinois, the attorne ...

's "Charitable Database Search", the Commission reported an annual income of roughly $500,000 in 2014 and 2015 eg. Number: 01008852; EIN: 360898425 In 2014, Executive Director Joseph Ways was compensated $167,000 while retiring Vice-President Arthur Bilek collected a salary of $87,000.

References

External links

Chicago Crime Commission website

Anonymous Crime Reporting Hotline

FBI Chicago

Project Safe Neighborhoods Chicago

{{Authority control 1919 establishments in Illinois Organizations based in Chicago Organized crime in Chicago History of Chicago Law enforcement in Illinois Charities based in Illinois

Summary

Highlights

Publications and archives

Crime reporting

Public activities

Funding & Expenses

Further reading

References

External links