Community Area 4 Chicago Incidents: Theft (1,112) and Battery (522) Lead Offenses

Out of 3,422 recent incidents logged in Chicago's Community Area 4, nearly half fall into just two categories. Theft and Battery dominate the local police blotter.

Key takeaway: Property crimes drive the volume in Community Area 4, with Theft accounting for 32.5% of all reports, while violent offenses like Battery see significantly higher arrest rates (21.5%) compared to property offenses.

The numbers reveal a clear divide between how different offenses are reported and resolved. High-volume property crimes rarely result in an immediate arrest. Conversely, incidents involving direct physical confrontation or contraband yield much higher clearance rates at the scene.

Here is exactly what the data shows.

Overview of Incidents in Chicago's Community Area 4

Chicago police data Community Area 4 records show 3,422 total incidents across 16 primary offense categories. The distribution is heavily skewed toward property loss and personal disputes.

To understand the Chicago offense types Community Area 4 distribution, we have to look at the raw incident counts alongside their respective arrest totals.

The data highlights a massive concentration in the top four categories. Combined, Theft, Battery, Criminal Damage, and Deceptive Practice account for 2,286 incidents, or 66.8% of the total volume.

Dominant Offense Types: Theft and Battery

Theft incidents Chicago Community Area 4 represent nearly one in three calls for service. With 1,112 reported incidents, it is by far the most common offense in the neighborhood.

Despite the high volume, arrests for theft remain low. Only 73 of those 1,112 incidents resulted in an arrest, yielding a 6.6% arrest rate. This is standard for property crimes where the perpetrator is rarely on the scene when police arrive.

Here's the thing: violent offenses show a completely different statistical profile.

Battery ranks second in total volume with 522 incidents. Because battery involves physical contact and often requires police to separate parties at the scene, the arrest rate is substantially higher. Battery arrests Chicago statistics show 112 arrests in Community Area 4, a 21.5% rate.

Criminal Damage and Deceptive Practice Reports

Property damage and financial crimes form the next tier of frequency. Criminal Damage logged 342 incidents, making it the third most common offense.

Arrests for criminal damage sit at 8.5%, with 29 arrests recorded. This category frequently includes vandalism or broken vehicle windows, which are notoriously difficult to clear without immediate eyewitnesses or video evidence.

Deceptive Practice follows closely with 310 incidents. This category covers fraud, identity theft, and scams.

The result? The arrest rate for Deceptive Practice is the second-lowest among major categories at just 1.9%. Only 6 arrests were made across more than 300 reports, reflecting the complex, often multi-jurisdictional nature of financial fraud investigations.

Arrest Rates for Key Offenses in Community Area 4

Volume is only half the story. Arrest rates reveal how these incidents are processed and the likelihood of an immediate law enforcement resolution.

When we sort the Community Area 4 Chicago crime statistics by arrest rate, a clear hierarchy emerges based on the nature of the crime.

• Narcotics: 100% arrest rate (26 arrests / 26 incidents).
• Criminal Trespass: 29.6% arrest rate (34 arrests / 115 incidents).
• Battery: 21.5% arrest rate (112 arrests / 522 incidents).
• Assault: 14.2% arrest rate (35 arrests / 246 incidents).
• Robbery: 14.0% arrest rate (6 arrests / 43 incidents).

Crimes that require an officer to witness the event or physically remove a suspect—like trespassing and narcotics possession—naturally carry the highest arrest rates.

Violent crimes against persons, including Assault (246 incidents) and Robbery (43 incidents), hover around the 14% mark. While lower than Battery, these rates are still significantly higher than those for property crimes.

Low Arrest Rates for Property Crimes

Property crimes show a starkly different pattern. The data confirms that if an item is stolen or a vehicle is broken into, the statistical probability of an immediate arrest is minimal.

Burglary saw 200 incidents in Community Area 4, but only 5 arrests. That is a 2.5% clearance rate at the incident level.

Motor Vehicle Theft is even lower. Out of 188 reported stolen vehicles, police made just 2 arrests, resulting in a 1.1% arrest rate.

To understand this trend, we can look at a recent sample of Motor Vehicle Theft Chicago recent incidents across other neighborhoods.

None of these recent sampled incidents resulted in an arrest at the time of the report. Whether it is an automobile theft in Community Area 51 or a burglary from a motor vehicle in Community Area 24, the initial police response primarily serves to document the loss for insurance and investigative purposes.

Analyzing the Zero-Arrest Categories

There are three offense categories in Community Area 4 that recorded zero arrests during this reporting period.

Criminal Sexual Assault logged 30 incidents with 0 arrests. This zero-arrest metric at the incident level often reflects the delayed nature of these investigations, where arrests occur days or weeks after the initial report is filed.

We see a similar pattern in recent citywide data. A non-aggravated Criminal Sexual Assault reported on March 20, 2026, in Community Area 7 (Case JK188378) also shows zero arrests at the time of the incident report.

Stalking logged 13 incidents in Community Area 4, again with zero initial arrests. A recent simple stalking case in Community Area 27 (Case JK189485) mirrors this outcome.

Finally, Public Peace Violation recorded 10 incidents and zero arrests. These are typically minor disturbances that are resolved by police presence dispersing the parties without taking anyone into custody.

Narcotics Incidents and High Arrest Rates

Narcotics incidents follow a unique operational pattern. Unlike thefts or burglaries, which are typically reported by victims after the fact, narcotics incidents are almost entirely generated by proactive police work.

In Community Area 4, there were 26 reported Narcotics incidents. All 26 resulted in an arrest.

Truth is: a narcotics incident is rarely logged unless an officer has already discovered contraband and detained a suspect.

This 100% clearance rate is consistent across the city. For example, a recent incident in Community Area 32 (Case JK203857) involved possession of 30 grams or less of cannabis and immediately resulted in an arrest.

We see a similar proactive enforcement pattern with weapons charges. A recent Concealed Carry License Violation in Community Area 10 (Case JK301663) for being armed while under the influence also resulted in an immediate arrest.

Citywide Context: Recent Incident Severity and Outcomes

To contextualize the Community Area 4 data, we reviewed a random 14-incident sample of recent Chicago police reports from the last 120 days. This grab-bag spans multiple neighborhoods and offense types.

The severity codes assigned to these incidents dictate the police response.

• Severity 06 (Theft/Burglary): Seen in a recent over-$500 theft in Community Area 26 (Case JK189564) and an under-$500 theft in Community Area 6 (Case JK273882). Neither resulted in an arrest.
• Severity 14 (Criminal Damage): Seen in vehicle damage reports in Community Area 2 (Case JK195691 and Case JK268529) and Community Area 67 (Case JK301741). All three resulted in zero arrests.
• Severity 04A (Aggravated Assault - Handgun): Logged in Community Area 71 (Case JK292882). Despite the high severity involving a firearm, no immediate arrest was made.

Out of the 14 recent citywide incidents sampled, only two resulted in an arrest. Both were proactive police stops: the narcotics possession in Community Area 32 and the concealed carry violation in Community Area 10.

This strongly aligns with the baseline data from Community Area 4. Reactive reports—where a citizen calls 911 after a crime has occurred—rarely end in an immediate arrest, regardless of whether the crime is a petty theft or an aggravated assault.

Quick Takeaways

• Volume leader: Theft is the most frequent offense in Community Area 4, with 1,112 incidents, making up nearly a third of all reports.
• Violent vs. Property arrests: Battery yields a 21.5% arrest rate, while Burglary and Motor Vehicle Theft sit at 2.5% and 1.1%, respectively.
• Proactive enforcement: Narcotics offenses have a 100% arrest rate (26 for 26), as these incidents are generated directly by police stops rather than victim reports.
• Financial crimes: Deceptive Practice is highly reported (310 incidents) but rarely cleared at the scene, showing a mere 1.9% arrest rate.
• Delayed clearances: Serious offenses like Criminal Sexual Assault (30 incidents) show zero immediate arrests in the incident data, reflecting the longer investigative timelines required for these cases.