Residents Support Barrington's Night Out Against Crime

The threat of rain didn’t keep people away from Barrington’s sixth annual National Night Out Against Crime. The annual event, sponsored by the Barrington Police Department, was held at Citizen’s Park in Barrington on Tuesday, Aug. 2. 

Barrington Police Chief Jerry Libit said the main goal is to establish a relationship with the residents.

“It’s intended to create more of a bond between the public and law enforcement,” Libit said. “We want to show them we’re more than just a squad car or fire truck driving down the street.”

The threat of rain ended up cutting the outside portion short about 6:30 p.m., when lightning was spotted and most headed home or into the pavilion.

Jennifer Wisniewski, Barrington police chief’s assistant and coordinator of the event, said while this was the lowest turnout the event has had, it was still a success.

“This year we are a lot more interaction between residents and police and fire officials,” Wisniewski said. “There is a lot more to do besides just talking with law enforcement and being given a pamphlet on drug awareness.”

Attendees participated in several activities, including two separate courses that simulated driving under the influence and texting while driving. Participants attempted to navigate a golf cart around a maze of orange cones either while wearing a pair of goggles or while holding a cell phone. The DUI simulation gave the driver the feeling of having a blood-alcohol level of .17 to .20.

Barrington firefighter John Matlachowski watched his son Joe attempt to navigate the course while wearing the goggles. Joe said the goggles blurred his vision but he still could see straight.

For the “intexticated” simulation, participants were given a cell phone provided by Verizon Wireless while Barrington police Sgt. Kevin Croke texted them.

“What it’s trying to illustrate is how distracted driving gets your mind off the road,” Croke said. “What people don’t realize is texting is different than changing the station or song on the radio. It takes your mind completely off of driving.

Barrington resident Patty Janke tried out the course with her son Jordan in the passenger seat. Janke looked down at the phone and stopped or slowed down every time Croke texted her.

“You lose focus on what’s around you,” she said. “I kept looking down and not paying attention.”

The KlaasKids Foundation also was there, taking fingerprints and pictures of children for parents in the event that they go missing. Meredith Klaas, whose husband’s cousin started the foundation, said the parents are given a sheet with their child’s fingerprints and other identifying information to help police in the event the child is abducted or goes missing. They also were giving parents a DNA kit to freeze.

“We don’t keep any of this information — it all goes with the parents,” Klaas said.

Jaime Salvatore brought her two sons Nate and Zach and said she liked the concept.

“It’s very cool. Anything that can help find my kids is great,” she said.

The Lake County Metropolitan Enforcement Group showed pictures from large drug busts of different types of controlled substances. The group is a multi-jurisdictional task force specializing in drug enforcement, said special agent Ben Fapso.

“We’re here to help educate adults who don’t come in contact with these types of drugs as well as kids to help them identify what some of these narcotics look like,” Fapso said.

Other events included a watermelon-eating contest, moonwalk, face painting and a Baggo tournament.