Evanston Police Department

06/03/2026

The ETHS Boys Track & Field team brought home the 2026 IHSA Class 3A State Title! Scoring 56 points, the Wildkits dominated the track to break a 47-year championship drought! Led by Head Coach Don Michelin Sr., our boys brought the heat across 8 different events.

Huge congratulations to our individual State Champions:
- High Jump Champion: Jaden Jean-Paul
- 4x100m & 4x200m Relay Champions: Emmanuel Roche, Manny Blake, Anthony Honore, and Justin Johnson (Setting a new STATE RECORD!)
Shoutout to the Evanston Police Department for the epic es**rt home, and to all the family, friends, and fans who came out to welcome our champions.

Thank you to Coach Michelin, Assistant Coaches George Woolridge, Samuel White, Kevin Caines, Vernard Harris, and every single athlete on the roster.

You made history!

06/02/2026

You may notice a few more bikes rolling through Evanston this week!

Officers from the Evanston Police Department and members of the Lincolnwood Police Department are participating in the International Police Mountain Bike Association (IPMBA) Mountain Bike Certification Course.

IPMBA is a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the use of bicycles in public safety, providing resources and networking opportunities, and delivering some of the most comprehensive training available for public safety cyclists.

As part of their certification, these sworn officers will be riding throughout the city, with a focus on the downtown area. Training topics include bicycle safety education, identifying vehicles parked in bike lanes, and developing the skills necessary to safely and effectively patrol on two wheels.

If you see them out and about, be sure to say hello and give them a wave! They're being challenged physically and mentally in ways they may have never experienced before—all while having a little fun along the way. Trust us... their bodies are feeling it!

And remember, these are sworn officers. They don't want to write tickets while they're training, so let's all do our part and "give 'em a brake!"

Good luck to all of the officers participating, and thank you for helping make our community safer!

06/02/2026

Traffic Tip Tuesday

Slow Down Near Schools, Parks, and Community Centers

As the school year ends, summer programs, camps, and recreational activities are preparing to begin throughout Evanston. Expect increased pedestrian activity near parks, schools, and community facilities. Children may enter the roadway unexpectedly, especially near crosswalks and bus stops.

Evanston's neighborhoods are filled with families enjoying the summer. Slow down, stay alert, and be prepared to stop for pedestrians—especially near parks and school grounds.

Illinois Law:
625 ILCS 5/11-1002 requires drivers to stop and yield the right-of-way to pedestrians within a marked crosswalk and to pedestrians crossing at an intersection with no traffic signal.

06/02/2026

The 5th Annual Doria Johnson Golf Tournament at The Evans at Canal Shores was a huge success! Every swing helped raise vital funds for the Doria Dee Johnson Scholarship. This wonderful event supports amazing Evanston Township High School graduates attending an HBCUl! Huge congratulations to this year's scholarship winners Olivia Stephenson and Michael Leveso! A massive thank you goes out to every single golfer, sponsor, and volunteer who stepped up to support our local students. Together, we are building brighter futures!

06/01/2026

How do you know that Summer is getting close? Well here's a hint.

EPD and EFD members attended the 1st lifeguard roll call of the season to wish all of our lifeguards a safe and successful summer along the lakefront.

Marine 21 members and patrol officers were in attendance as we continue working together to keep our beaches safe for everyone enjoying the shoreline this season. Marine 21 is a newer initiative that places police officers and firefighters on the lakefront during designated times to provide an additional level of safety, visibility, and rapid response along Evanston’s beaches and shoreline areas.

As beach season begins, we encourage everyone to pay attention to posted water conditions and warning flags, follow lifeguard instructions, and make safety a priority while enjoying the lakefront. Being a lifeguard is not an easy job, and we appreciate the focus, training, and quick decision-making it takes to help keep our community safe all summer long.

Stay safe, stay hydrated, and have a great summer!

05/30/2026

Please join the Evanston Police Department in welcoming the newest member of our K9 Unit, K9 Zidan! Zidan is a handsome sable German Shepherd (born November 2024). He is partnering up with Officer Jeremy Nieman, a respected 20+ year veteran of the EPD. Together, they form K9 Unit 442!

This dedicated team just wrapped up an intense six-week, 300-hour classroom and field training course at Shallow Creek Kennels Premier Police Service Dogs in Sharpsville, PA.

K9 Zidan is officially certified in:

- Tracking and Building Searching

- Narcotics Detection

- Handler Protection and Criminal Apprehension

- Article Recovery and Obedience

Effective this month, their call sign 442 is designated for commemorative purposes to honor Detective Allen Reddins of the Oak Park Police Department, who was killed in the line of duty in November 2024. We carry this number with immense pride and respect.

We are so proud to have this incredible team protecting and serving the Evanston community. Keep an eye out for them on the streets and give them a wave!

05/29/2026

Obi stopped by to chat with Chief Stewart during his daily walk to inquire about a possible application to the K9 Unit.

After a brief discussion, a slight nap, and eventually being picked up, it was determined that Obi would prefer stopping by from time to time just to say hello instead.

Thank you to his human, Savanah, for the fun conversation and for giving Obi such a great walk around town!

05/28/2026

Special thanks to Evanston RoundTable for this wonderful write-up on the Community Police Academy Graduation Ceremony at the AUX. Congratulations to Class 60 on this incredible accomplishment.

Members of Class 60 of the Community Police Academy gather at The Aux for their graduation ceremony. Since 1995, the Community Police Academy has

05/27/2026

The Evanston Police Department Community Policing Unit invites all residents to "Paddle & Connect" on this Saturday, May 30, 2026, from 12:00 PM to 4:00 PM at James Park Outdoor Pickleball Courts. This initiative aims to foster community relationships with police and fire personnel through pickleball, featuring open play, instruction, and activities for all ages.

05/27/2026

Congratulations to Records Review Officer Catalina DeLaRosa on her retirement from the Evanston Police Department after 31 years of dedicated service!

Catalina, affectionately known as “Cathy” around the station, began her career as an Identification Clerk assisting with fingerprinting and arrest documentation. She later stepped into the role of Review Officer, where she became an essential part of the department’s daily operations, reviewing and managing hundreds of thousands of police reports throughout her
career.

Over the years, Cathy developed extensive knowledge and experience working with the National Incident-Based Reporting System (NIBRS), the national reporting system used to track and report crime data. Her work helped ensure reports were accurate, compliant, and properly documented, an incredibly important responsibility that often happens behind the scenes.

In addition to serving as a court liaison for a period of time, Cathy also managed the Evanston Daily Crime Bulletin and consistently supported the department in ways that often happened quietly behind the scenes, but made a significant impact on the organization every single day.

Most recently, Cathy played a major role in helping EPD transition to a new reporting system in June 2025. She dedicated a significant amount of time and effort behind the scenes to help ensure the department remained up to speed and compliant throughout the process.

Police departments do not function with police officers alone. They also rely on the professionalism, knowledge, and dedication of the many people working behind the scenes
every day.

Thank you, Cathy, for all that you have done to support the Evanston community, the Evanston Police Department, and the men and women of EPD over the last 31 years. Your presence will surely be missed.

We wish her nothing but the absolute best as she steps into this next chapter of retirement.