A. City Council Findings:
1. The City Council hereby finds and declares that it is the right of every person, regardless of race, color, creed, religion, national origin, sex, age or disability to be secure and protected from fear, intimidation and physical harm caused by the activities of violent groups and individuals. It is not the intent of this section to interfere with the exercise of the constitutionally protected rights of freedom of expression and association. The City Council hereby recognizes the constitutional right of every citizen to harbor and express beliefs on any lawful subject whatsoever, to lawfully associate with others who shall have similar beliefs, to petition lawfully constituted authority for a redress of perceived grievances, and to participate in the electoral process.
2. The City Council finds, however, that urban, suburban and rural communities, neighborhoods and schools throughout the State are being terrorized and plundered by street gangs. The City Council finds that there are now several hundred street gangs operating in Illinois, and that while their terrorism is most widespread in urban areas, street gangs are spreading into suburban and rural areas of Illinois, including McHenry County.
3. The City Council further finds that street gangs are often controlled by criminally sophisticated adults who take advantage of our youth by intimidating and coercing them into membership by employing them as drug couriers and runners, and by using them to commit brutal crimes against persons and property to further the financial benefit to and dominance of the street gang.
4. Street gang activity presents a clear and present danger to public order and safety and is not constitutionally protected. No society is or should be required to endure such activities without redress. Accordingly, it is the intent of the City Council, by enacting this section, to prohibit street gang related activity.
B. Definition: For the purpose of this section,
STREET GANG or GANG is defined as any ongoing organization, association in fact or group of three (3) or more persons, whether formally or informally organized, or any subgroup or affiliated group thereof, having as one of its activities the commission of criminal or illegal acts, including by way of example only and not in any way limiting or specifying, illegal drug distribution, and whose members individually or collectively engage in or have engaged in a pattern of criminal or illegal acts, and which group frequently, though not necessarily, claim one or more particular geographic territory or “turf” exclusively as its realm of influence and operations.
C. Colors, Emblems Or Insignia: It shall be unlawful for any person within the City to knowingly use, display or wear colors, emblems or insignia on or about their person in public for the purpose of promoting any street gang activity.
D. Act, Utterance, Gesture Or Display: It shall be unlawful for any person within the City to knowingly do or make any act, utterance, gesture or display for the purpose of communicating membership of, affiliation with, association with, support of, identification with, sympathy toward or affront or insult toward any street gang, or with actual knowledge that the subject act, utterance, gesture or display is used and recognized as communicative of street gang membership, affiliation, association, support, identification, sympathy or affront.
E. Penalty: Any person, corporation, firm, or partnership found guilty of violating any provision of this chapter shall be fined according to the Fines and Penalties found in Title 15, Chapter 1: Fines and Penalties, and be responsible for the City's cost of prosecution, including reasonable attorney fees. Each day that a violation continues shall be considered a separate offense.
(1987 Code § 14-35) (amd. Ord. 22-40, 6-20-2022)