Elmhurst Church's Pro-Life Display Vandalized: Cops

ELMHURST, IL – About 1,000 wooden crosses were pulled out and left laying on the lawn over the weekend at Mary Queen of Heaven Catholic Church, 442 N. West Ave., Elmhurst police said.

The vandalism was believed to have occurred between 7 p.m. Saturday and 7 a.m. Sunday, police said.

The crosses were put there to demonstrate the church's pro-life position on abortion.

In the hours before the vandalism, the Rev. Sunny Castillo issued a statement online about the crosses. He said October was known as Life Month, "dedicated to the upholding the dignity of every human being from conception to natural death."

"The crosses in front of our church are a new visual experience here at our parish, that we are receiving from St. Charles Borromeo Parish," Castillo said. "These crosses are signs of our love for human life, and our desire for the protection of life. It is also a symbol of our prayers for the unborn, as well as for the parents and family who are all victims of the culture of death."

St. Charles Borromeo was a Catholic Church in Bensenville that closed over the summer.

Elmhurst police said they are investigating the vandalism.