Western Springs Coronavirus Response: Police Make Changes

WESTERN SPRINGS, IL — Lower-priority calls will be handled differently in Western Springs, La Grange and La Grange Park in light of the rapidly evolving situation as a result of the coronavirus, the police departments announced in a news release Monday. These changes are to protect both residents and police staff, the release said. All three departments belong to the Lyons Township Area Communications Center.

The police in the three towns will continue to respond to emergency calls for service, including volent crimes, in-progress calls where a suspect is still on site, traffic crashes and property crimes where evidence may exist, police said. Other calls, they said, will be initially handled by phone, including delayed reports, information for police and ordinance violations.

The police departments also will suspend all in-person service functions such as fingerprinting, building tours and child seat safety checks, the release said.

"As we have witnessed, this is a very fluid situation and we must have the capacity to adapt with ongoing changes," the departments said.

If calls do require a police response, residents are asked to meet with officers outside.