Illinois
11 Illinois teens charged after using dating apps to allegedly lure and beat men as part of a social media trend
Nearly a dozen Illinois teenagers were slapped with felony charges after they allegedly used dating apps to lure and beat two adult men over the summer — reportedly as part of a social media trend, according to police.
Some of the 11 teens involved — all boys aged 16 and 17 — were inspired by a cryptic viral social media trend, the Mount Prospect Police Department said in a statement on Thursday without elaborating on details of the apparent trend.
One of the victims, a 41-year-old man, reported to police that he’d been beaten by “a group of teenagers” in a parking lot on West Northwest Highway in Mount Prospect, Illinois around 9:45 p.m. on July 8.
“The victim related that he had utilized an online dating app to arrange to meet a person at that location. After arriving, the victim related that he was approached by a group of teenage males, who confronted him verbally and battered him. Teenagers in the group also damaged the victim’s vehicle,” police said.
Police did not specify what dating apps the group used to nab their would-be victims.
The teenagers allegedly tailed the 41-year-old when he tried to bolt to his car, but he managed to escape, the local department said.
Cops responded to a report of a similar battery a mere 10 minutes later.
The group’s second victim, a 23-year-old man, told police that he was supposed to meet someone he met on a dating app just a mile away from the location of the first assault when he was ganged up on and beaten by the teens. One of them even slashed one of his car tires, according to the police report.
Even with one tire indisposed, the victim was able to drive away. He couldn’t get very far with the slashed tire and stopped at a nearby residence to call 911, police said.
Investigators used surveillance footage to track down the teenage brutes.
“The Mount Prospect Police Detectives were able to locate video surveillance footage that captured the incident at 606 West Northwest Highway and were able to identify some of the offenders in the video,” police said.
“An extensive investigation was conducted where 11 total juveniles were identified as taking part in one or both incidents.”
Each of the 11 teens was charged with one or two counts of aggravated battery, criminal damage to property and mob action, depending on their involvement in the attacks.
Detectives also said that one of the teens used “a racial and another derogatory term” during one of the alleged incidents, tacking on two hate crime charges for that teen, according to police.
None of the teens were publically named by police because they are all minors. They all turned themselves in last month and were taken to Chicago’s Cook County Juvenile Detention Center.
Mount Prospect Police hope other teens learn from the accused’s mistake.
“We are asking parents to take these incidents as an opportunity to talk with their teenage children about the seriousness of actively participating in these types of trends they see on social media,” Police Chief Michael Eterno said.
The charges were approved by the Cook County State’s Attorney’s Office, according to the MPPD.
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Illinois
‘Millionaires tax’ would hike rate 61% on 22K Illinois small businesses
Combined state and federal taxes would take more than 50% of the top-end income for 22,000 Illinois small businesses.
Proposals in the Illinois General Assembly could slam massive tax hikes onto small businesses, the state’s primary job creator historically and in the recovery from the COVID-19 downturn.
One measure would punish 22,020 Illinois small businesses with a huge increase in their marginal state income tax rate and create a top tax rate of nearly 50.3% for them, once all state and federal income taxes are factored in.
S-corporations and partnerships, which “pass-through” their business income to their owners, who pay taxes as individuals, would see their top marginal state income tax rate jump from 4.95% to 7.95%, a 61% hike.
That would happen because the legislation, House Joint Resolution Constitutional Amendment 21, adds a 3% income tax on income above $1 million. It is scheduled for a hearing April 23 at which it could pass out of committee and go to a potential full House vote.
Research has shown that an increase in the top marginal tax rate is associated with a decrease in entrepreneurs’ hiring activity and lower wages for their employees.
Illinois has one of the highest unemployment rates in the nation and among the slowest wage growth. These are exacerbated by some of the highest state and local tax burdens in the nation, including the second-highest property taxes and eighth-highest sales taxes.
In 2017 Illinois residents endured the largest permanent income tax hike in state history, when lawmakers increased the rate by 32%, from 3.75% to 4.95%.
Illinois already pushes out more businesses than virtually any other state. The “millionaire’s tax” could make the situation even worse. Illinoisans should reject this call for higher taxes on the state’s vital small business community.
Contact your state representative to stop the small business tax hike here.
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