In Illinois, more than 100 cities have laws that can penalize landlords and tenants when someone calls the police. Penalties range from fines to tenant evictions to shutting down rental properties.
The laws can sometimes punish landlords or evict renters even when people living in a home have called 911 to report a crime committed against themselves. I have reported on housing issues for the Better Government Association, based in Chicago, for years, and I am writing about these laws as a fellow for The Times. I want to hear from people who have been directly affected.
Have you signed a rental lease that requires you to commit to keeping criminal activity low in your neighborhood? Are you a tenant who was evicted from your home after an arrest or a call to the police? Or are you a landlord who has had to pay fines after a tenant was suspected of breaking the law?
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