CHICAGO LOCAL UPDATE NATARUS AND UNRELATED POLICE MATTER

ALDERMAN STORY
Over in the 42nd Ward, which includes the Gold Coast and parts of the Loop, alderman Burton Natarus has come up with a novel service for voters: door-to-door absentee balloting.
On January 20 he sent voters in his ward an application for absentee ballots along with a letter offering them three options: "Drop it off with your doorman, mail it to the Board of Elections, or call Robert at (312) 645-0215 and he will arrange for a pickup."

O.K. We imagine this is going to be somewhat of a lively debate with trusting voters. Maybe we should call this voter movement Mini-Chicago gets the vote out. The rest of the story to this tip can be found at this link.
http://blogs.chicagoreader.com/politics/2007/02/06/alderman-burt-natarus-always-willing-help/


POLICE STORY
Ware case: Aug. 18, 2003
8435 S Loomis

We currently have an Officer going through a legal battle and yes there are others and like the others this one involves what else? Come on you know its known as a cash settlement lawsuit with the city. This deceased family comes forward and claims the officer planted the weapon in the car, the deceased offender had no weapon even though the family member speaking was not present at the scene. Were waiting to see what the 16 yr old brother an alleged independent witness has to say. He would have been between about 12-13 yrs of age at the time of the shooting.

The attorney is questioning via family, why the gun remained in the car with the now deceased if the offender was such a threat and calling it the alleged gun. The Officer has attempted to explain why the weapon was secured in the vehicle with the immobile offender. Apparently the offender had no further ability to throw a few rounds off in furtherance at the officers. The family not being present at the incident are now claiming in their lawsuit the deceased had no gun, the gun was planted and the deceased had an inability to walk since he was paraplegic, etc. We know he was able to move about the vehicle by apparently using his upper body strength not an uncommon necessary ability.

Attorneys for Ware's family contend in their complaint that Blake's actions are part of a larger trend of police misconduct."Officers of the Chicago Police Department abuse citizens -- on a frequent basis, yet the Chicago Police Department makes findings of wrongdoing in a disproportionately small number of cases," the complaint states.

Opening arguments for the trial began Monday. Longtime Chicago resident Tammy Faye Grant testified that her son did not have a gun during the shooting and did not exit the car upon police request because he was a paraplegic. Later this week, Ware's attorneys said, they will call to the witness stand Ware's 16-year-old brother, an independent eyewitness, and firefighters and a paramedic who were at the scene of the incident. Below is the link.
http://nwitimes.com/articles/2007/02/07/news/illiana/doc12494c2a8341e0ee8625727b00077fc1.txt