CHICAGO – State Senator Patricia Van Pelt (D-Chicago) demanded answers and sought solutions to the state crime lab’s backlog of DNA from nearly 700 murder cases during a Senate Public Health and Criminal Law committee hearing this afternoon.

“The backlog in murder DNA processing at the state crime lab is unacceptable,” Van Pelt said. “Technology exists to test DNA in under two hours, yet DNA from nearly 700 murder cases from the past few years is still backlogged. Law enforcement needs to be taking advantage of this technology. There are 700 families waiting for answers. They deserve closure.”

Read more ...

The Chicago Regional Council of Carpenters Apprentice & Training Program is accepting applications for future General Construction Pre-Apprenticeship training classes.

Each candidate must present the following requirements at the Apprentice Program Office, 1256 Estes Ave, Elk Grove Village, between the hours of 9:30 AM and 4:00 PM, Monday through Friday, no later than Thursday, April 4, 2019:

1. Letter of recommendation on a local union letterhead, signed by an officer
2. Must be at least 17 years old (driver's license or state identification card required)
3. Copy of either high school diploma, high school transcripts (must have official school seal - 8 credits minimum), or G.E.D. certificate
4. Copy of social security card or a receipt showing duplicate card has been applied for
5. A $25 non-refundable application processing fee (money orders and cashiers checks only - no cash)

All five above-listed requirements must be submitted at the time of filing.

Further details will be mailed to each applicant regarding the required pre-test session and aptitude test dates.

CBS2 Chicago - February 28, 2019 | original article

CHICAGO (CBS) — Some people in Chicago are now demanding answers after CBS 2 Investigator Pam Zekman first reported on dozens of unsolved murders dating back 20 years. Many of those investigations have been delayed by backlogs in analyzing DNA.

A group prayed and read off the names of the 50 victims at a community meeting Wednesday night.

CBS 2 disclosed that those women were strangled, their bodies dumped in abandoned buildings, alleys and even garbage containers. Some were even set on fire.

“I saw the piece that you did and it was shocking,” said Beverly Reed Scott, who organized the meeting.

Among the attendees was State Sen. Patricia Van Pelt, who had previously asked police about a possible serial killer.

“And they assured us that there was not any evidence of it,” she said. “But with that piece that aired the other night on channel 2, it raises the question again that maybe there is.”

Read more ...

CBS2 Chicago - February 27, 2019 | original article

CHICAGO (CBS) — A Chicago alderman and a state senator are demanding answers about the unsolved cases of 50 women’s murders after CBS 2 Investigator Pam Zekman asked last week if there is a serial killer loose in Chicago.

Beverly Reed Scott organized a meeting and plans to organize the community to press for action in the women’s cases. Attendees honored the 50 women with prayer and reciting their names.

Since 2001 they are some of the women who have been beaten, raped, and strangled; and had their bodies dumped in alleys, vacant lots, abandoned buildings, and garbage containers. Some were set on fire.

“I’d like to see the superintendent cry over these 50 women,” Scott said.

Meanwhile, Ald. Pat Dowell (3rd) says she’ll call for City Council hearings.

“There’s too many black women that lost their lives, and we don’t know what happened to them,” she said. “They just disappeared.”

As CBS 2 disclosed, Thomas Hargrave, of the Murder Accountability Project, believes that similarities in many of the cases point to a possible serial killer.

“We think it’s extremely likely that there are common killers in the Chicago series,” he said.

A cousin of the most recent victim, Reo Renee Holyfield, described his frustrations getting information from the police.

“They told us to just wait,” Ricardo Holyfield said. “Until CBS Pam came and told us that she dug a little bit more. When Pam came she spoke up loud enough that they gave all that stuff to us and we got a chance to put her to rest.”

“This is raising some questions that need to be answered,” said State Sen. Patricia Van Pelt. “I think these young ladies are falling between the cracks.”

The police department has previously told CBS 2 they don’t believe that at this time there is any actionable evidence that points to a serial killer in these cases. Police officials have refused to do an on-camera interview.