Elderly Chicago couple experiences No Knock Raid & then banished from their home

[rambone]

A neighborhood snitch reported an "ailing dog on the sidewalk" in front of the Harris home in Chicago, Illinois. The couple, age 77 and 80, then had their home invaded by masked men. The raid came complete with 2 SWAT Teams, grenades through the windows, and a total of at least 40 officers. No evidence of any drugs or dogfighting crime was found in the wake of the raid.

As they picked up the pieces they were then approached by a building inspector, who then ordered them to vacate their home of 40 years. They had never received any violations or warnings before.

Now their lives are shattered and everyone is worse off. At least nobody was caught walking around their home holding a golf club.

You didn't think those loose gutters would go unnoticed, did ya punk?
​

Family shattered after raid, home loss

R.J. Harris, who is 77, was in bed when a noise jolted him awake.Bam. What was that?

Bam. It sounded like an explosion.

Bam. The front door swung open and officers in masks swarmed inside, pointing rifles.

Police! Hands up! Police!

​

 

[Prometheus]

What the heck kind of law is this:

"It did not note that Michael Harris was arrested only for the largely unknown misdemeanor of being a felon in possession of non-neutered dogs"

40 cops for this? Really? Imagine what CPD would need if it it ever ran up against someone with non-neutered cats!

 

[rambone]

"It did not note that Michael Harris was arrested only for the largely unknown misdemeanor of being a felon in possession of non-neutered dogs"

Da law is da law. Break law, go to jail.

 

[Magneto]

The answer to your questions is that this happened in Chicago.

 

[RockofStrength]

Oh, I'm sure that a rich white family won't move in to replace these poor folk. I'm certain this wasn't an attempt to make the neighborhood respectable and "decent".

You don't let a man live in the same house for 40 years and then suddenly slap both him and his two daughters with housing violations and building code violations by the score. This was a STRONG "get out of our neighborhood" on the part of the fine city of Chicago and its honorable PD and Sheriff's office.

 

[Nightwalker65]

I could be wrong,but it sounds like a case of "eminent domain".....Chicago wanted the property,and decided to take it,when they knew it wasn't for sale

 

[YETB]

"In a neighborhood of new mansions..."

That says everything i need to know.

Lived in the western burbs of chicago (far west - Geneva/Batavia) and had friends lose farmland to eminent domain (bordered a forest preserve) and had another friend have adjacent property owners report them because they had live concerts in their barn 1 Friday night a week -zoning violations -

the people that reported them? New residents that built a 2 million dollar home near them and didn't like their tree line - their home - or the barn.

They move in - and move the existing riff-raff out

 

[halfmileharry]

Yep, ya can have all the rights and liberty you can afford.
Poor dumb sob worked his arse off just to have it kicked all the way to Daly Hall.
I'd love to know who planned this clandestine operation and gave the order to execute it.

 

[bingley]

Let's take a look here:

After the raid, a news release about it appeared on the 18th District CAPS website.

The release, noting that citizens had complained of animal cruelty and "gang/drug sales," concluded with the statement: "This is an excellent example of the police and citizens working together."

What the release did not note, however, was that no one was charged with "gang/drug" sales.

It did not note that Michael Harris was arrested only for the largely unknown misdemeanor of being a felon in possession of non-neutered dogs. After he got out of jail, he collected money from neighbors to have one of the dogs, Kiki, spayed and returned to the family.

Does anyone need the translation into plain English? The Harrises are guilty of being poor and Black (the code word is "gang/drug") and living in a "gentrifying" neighborhood. Forty officers tore up their house and couldn't find drugs or any other evidence of criminal wrongdoing!!! The police and citizens working together? If you can't find irony in this you need to go to irony school.

I wouldn't be too surprised if some developer had a hand in this. Now the developer won't have to give the Harrises the true worth of the plot.

Da Bing

 

[kevinj110]

Well bet that house is forsale soon and the developers get what they wanted.

 

[semperfi211]

With this being Jesse Jacksons home town and all the publicity, maybe he will be able to help them out, unless he has connections with the developers.