TINLEY PARK (WBBM NEWSRADIO) - Southwest suburban Tinley Park is planning tighter security measures at summertime events following fights caused by a flash mob of teens at a carnival last weekend.
Tinley Park Mayor Michael Glotz said, in a newsletter to residents, that “it’s a sad reality” but that there needs to be tighter controls at village events.
He said you can expect to see bag checks, defined event perimeters, youth supervision policies and other security measures at large-scale events this summer.
Tinley Park village manager Pat Carr said teenagers weaponized social media last weekend and caused chaos at a Chamber of Commerce carnival.
“The residents suffer when thugs like this try to disrupt a peaceful event and we prepare for the next time,” said Carr
But, Carr said the one disruption is not going to cause the village to abandon its summertime events schedule.
“We’re not going to stop having these events and we’re not going to let them stop what we do, having fun events in Tinley Park.”
Tinley Park isn’t the only suburb making preparations for possible attempts to disrupt events. Palos Park Police Chief Joe Miller believes many suburbs are.
“We need to be prepared for it and look at contingency plans and so forth, and I think what our friends in Tinley Park experienced was a wake-up call to all of us,” Miller said.
Chief Miller said some of his officers assisted Tinley Park police last Saturday night in bringing peace to the chaos at the Armed Forces Weekend Carnival.
“I’m guessing we’re all taking a look at our plans, our approaches, what we’re seeing as emerging trends,” he said.
Meanwhile, Tinley Park Mayor Glotz criticized those on social media who made, what he called, “horrendous comments” about the races of those involved in the flash mob. He said the Village does not condone hate speech of any kind and he encouraged people to handle their comments on social media with “the same civility and respect” they’d expect in return.
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