This week’s featured gig poster was created by Chicago-via-Indiana photographer and designer Adeleine Prairie Sinsabaugh.
This week’s featured gig poster was created for an online celebration of International Women’s Day sponsored by several organizations, including two from Chicago: music presenter HotHouse and publisher Haymarket Books.…Read More
We’re not out of the woods after more than a year of this, but we can still be grateful for the little things.
In the unlikely event you don’t already know the drill: for most of the past year, Bandcamp has passed along its usual cut of sales revenue on the first Friday of the month.…Read More
Spring returns, and Bandcamp Friday never leftLeor Galilon March 31, 2021 at 11:00 am Read More »
The man was taken to Illinois Masonic Medical Center where he was pronounced dead.
A Chicago police officer fatally shot an armed man Wednesday morning in Portage Park on the Northwest Side.
About 12:20 a.m., officers were involved in an on foot pursuit in the 3500 block of North Laramie Avenue, Chicago police said in a statement. The man allegedly pulled out a gun in the 5200 block of West Eddy Street, which led to a confrontation with officers, and an officer fired shots striking him.
The man was taken to Illinois Masonic Medical Center where he was pronounced dead, police said. A weapon was recovered from the scene.
Suspect’s firearm recovered at the scene. #ChicagoPolice pic.twitter.com/hwOSbv4BOD
— Tom Ahern (@TomAhernCPD) March 31, 2021
The specifics of the shooting are being investigated by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability with the full cooperation of the Chicago Police Department, police said. The officers involved will be placed on routine administrative duties for thirty days.
Less than an hour later, an off-duty Chicago police officer shot someone breaking into their home in Portage Park on the Northwest Side, police said.
Boqvist’s defensive play and confidence has improved this season, his second in the NHL, and his playing time has increased lately as a result.
The Blackhawks’ play has been so poor in recent weeks that it has been difficult for some of the team to stay positive.
But Adam Boqvist’s jovial, fun-loving personality has proven immune to discouragement.
“I’m always having a smile on my face when I come into the locker room,” Boqvist said Tuesday. “I feel like everyone is happy. We’re in a great position right now. We’re not 10 points behind the playoffs. We’re in the race and it’s fun. We have to enjoy the moment.”
That perspective on the season’s stretch run, especially considering the Hawks’ youth, is important to keep in mind. The fact the team is contending at all is a surprise; they should indeed try to enjoy and make the most of it.
Boqvist is certainly doing that personally.
The 20-year-old Swedish defenseman has been one of the Hawks’ few bright spots in March. His development curve — frustratingly slow and jagged during his rookie season — has greatly accelerated in his second season.
Coach Jeremy Colliton carried on for several minutes Tuesday with his praise for Boqvist.
“He’s doing a really good job of getting body position and putting himself in a position to get stops, to win loose pucks, to defend by working to stay on the [defensive] side [of opposing players] and using his skating to get through hands,” Colliton said. “When he does that, it creates opportunities for him to make plays in transition, and that’s where we think he’s really strong.
“Obviously there’s more there, but he’s improved a lot. With that confidence on the defensive side, it’s really helped his offensive game, too, because he’s comfortable. He’s got some swagger to him. He’s made a lot of plays for quite a long stretch of games here.”
The Hawks are 3-5-0 with a 45.2% on-ice shot attempt ratio in their last seven games, but Boqvist’s results are the opposite: he has an on-ice shot attempt differential above at least 43% in all eight games and above 50% in five.
Boqvist’s defensive improvement has been noticeable beyond statistics, too.
He has learned how to neutralize NHL-caliber players and read NHL-level plays, identifying where the puck will go — rather than where it currently is — and positioning himself in the correct spot to disrupt it. He memorably broke up several two-on-one rushes in the Stars and Lightning series.
His offseason decision to switch his defensive tactics and emphasize positioning and stick usage rather than body contact when engaging opponents has also helped.
There have been some hiccups, such as when he left the front of the net and still allowed a centering pass to get through for the Predators’ first goal Saturday.
But every Hawks defenseman has made mistakes — Boqvist at least has committed fewer than most. His on-ice scoring chance ratio this season is actually best among all Hawks defensemen by a significant margin.
On the offensive end, Boqvist may not yet be the dynamic playmaker some expected, but he’s making more and more crafty plays.
And Colliton wasn’t kidding about that blossoming swagger.
“From last year, I’ve been better overall out there,” Boqvist said. “I feel comfortable. And obviously when the coaches trust you, it makes you more confident. You want to be out there when the game is on the line. You want to be the guy.”
The coaching staff’s faith in Boqvist has manifested in his playing time. After averaging 16:13 of ice time per game as a rookie, then 16:39 through his first 19 games this season, Boqvist has handled almost 20 minutes per game over his last seven appearances — including 23:08 on March 20 and 21:56 on Sunday.
All the while, Boqvist’s optimism continues to push him forward.
“I come to the rink and [aim to] be one day better, not one day older,” he said. “I’m just going to keep working.”
The Chicago Blackhawks are exceeding all expectations this season so far. They went in with low standards and have risen above. Even if they barely miss the playoffs by a few points, in the end, it will be looked at as a season where the team competed hard every game. Although they have had a […]
Chicago Blackhawks: Three veterans to trade away at deadline – Da Windy City – Da Windy City – A Chicago Sports Site – Bears, Bulls, Cubs, White Sox, Blackhawks, Fighting Illini & More
The inception of the pandemic last year was a complete life changer for the rest of humanity. Many plans and
The post 4 Sports That Increased In Popularity During 2020 first appeared on CHI CITY SPORTS l Chicago Sports Blog – News – Forum – Fans – Rumors.Read More
4 Sports That Increased In Popularity During 2020CCS Staffon March 30, 2021 at 1:00 pm Read More »
Michael Jordan is among the new investors for the latest round into Dapper’s NBA Top Shot.
The post Michael Jordan among new investors for NBA Top Shot first appeared on CHI CITY SPORTS l Chicago Sports Blog – News – Forum – Fans – Rumors.Read More
Michael Jordan among new investors for NBA Top ShotZ Pon March 30, 2021 at 9:52 pm Read More »
Ariel Roman, an unarmed man who was shot by a Chicago cop last year at the Grand station, was compelled to appear before a federal grand jury earlier this year.
Federal authorities have opened a criminal investigation into a high-profile Chicago police shooting last year at a Red Line station that was caught on cellphone video, the Chicago Sun-Times has learned.
As the evening rush was starting on Feb. 28, 2020, Officer Melvina Bogard shot 34-year-old Ariel Roman on a platform at the Grand station, one of the city’s busiest train stops.
Roman was ordered to appear before a federal grand jury on Jan. 14 at the Dirksen Federal Building, according to a subpoena obtained by the Sun-Times. He was asked to provide medical records that stemmed from the shooting.
A letter signed by John Lausch, Chicago’s top federal prosecutor, noted those records were being sought “pursuant to an official criminal investigation.”
Roman’s shooting has prompted ongoing probes by the city and the Cook County state’s attorney, but the federal investigation hasn’t previously been reported. Assistant U.S. Attorney Joseph Fitzpatrick declined to comment, saying only that his office “can neither confirm nor deny the existence of an investigation.”
Before the police department was able to issue a statement about the shooting, video captured by a passerby went viral, fueling media attention and stoking public interest in the case.
Before the shooting, Bogard and her partner, Officer Bernard Butler, saw Roman moving between cars on a northbound Red Line. When Roman hopped off the train, the officers trailed him and tried to place him into custody at the foot of an escalator to the station’s main concourse.
During a struggle, Butler urged Bogard to shoot, and she fired once at Roman. Then, after Roman ran up the escalator, Bogard shot at him again. Video footage also showed two deployed stun guns laying on the station’s floor.
Roman suffered gunshot wounds to his hip and buttocks, and he was taken into custody and charged. Cook County prosecutors later dropped the resisting arrest and narcotics charges filed against him.
Andrew M. Stroth, one of Roman’s attorneys in a federal lawsuit against the officers and the city, said his client is still dealing with the fallout from the shooting. Over a year later, Roman has accrued roughly $500,000 in medical bills and still has a bullet lodged near his sciatic nerve, Stroth said.
“The video speaks for itself,” Stroth said. “Ariel Roman was unarmed and did not present a threat when he was shot by the officers.”
The shooting is also the subject of an “active review” by the state’s attorney’s office’s Law Enforcement Accountability Division, according to spokeswoman Tandra Simonton, who wouldn’t comment further.
In addition, sources said recommendations made by Chicago Police Supt. David Brown that could lead to administrative action against the two officers have been forwarded to the city’s Law Department, which prepares formal charges in police discipline cases.
A spokeswoman for the Law Department didn’t respond to questions from the Sun-Times. A CPD spokesman declined to comment on the federal criminal investigation.
Brown had until Dec. 29 to respond to recommendations made by the Civilian Office of Police Accountability and decide whether the two officers should face administrative charges in connection to the shooting.
COPA was expected to call for severe punishments for both Bogard and Butler. Just days after the shooting, COPA suggested the department strip both cops of their police powers, a move carried out by then-interim Supt. Charlie Beck.
Ephraim Eaddy, a COPA spokesman, said he was prohibited from disclosing the agency’s recommendations, which haven’t been made public. In addition, police spokesman Howard Ludwig couldn’t say whether Brown agreed with COPA’s findings or provide information about his response.
If the superintendent agrees with COPA in a disciplinary case, an officer is charged and faces an evidentiary hearing before the case is decided by the Chicago Police Board, a process that can take several years.
However, Eaddy noted his agency doesn’t know where exactly the case stands because the Law Department has “no defined timeline that I’m aware of that they have to do whatever their process requires.”
