Basejumper.com - archive

Quote:

Cops seek urban parachutists

By Dan P. Blake
Tribune staff reporter
Published September 29, 2006, 7:09 AM CDT

Chicago police this morning are looking for two parachutists who jumped from a skyscraper construction crane in the city's Streeterville neighborhood — the second such stunt in just over a week.

Security cameras captured the two people as they floated down in Cityfront Plaza just east of Tribune Tower, one block off Michigan Avenue, around 4:30 a.m. Then, the jumpers get into a gray Porsche SUV and drive off.

BASE must pay well in Chi-town


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Was the Porsche red, blue and silver with bulls on it. If not it could also been the rich, bold tv star that likes to jump of high profile stuff...

naaah not him, there would have been a helicoter filming the jump, and he would have given an interview explaining how he was going to escape the place.

I just happen to know a seasoned BASE jumper from Chi town that drires a german auto. although cranes are ok I'm pretty sure he would rather be next to the building for the added thrill of a possible building strike and gnarly landing with rebar everywhere. They may be assuming they left from the crane : )

have a gowaylow day
naked base #7

if only they had jumped 10 min sooner...
now that would be a story

wouldnt have been 430 am if it had been...

Downtown Base-Jumping Parachutists Charged
Misdemeanors For Unidentified Men

(STNG) CHICAGO Chicago Police charged three people with misdemeanors Saturday in connection to a daredevil stunt earlier this week where two men jumped from a downtown crane and parachuted to the ground.

 
Here is the link and the names of the people who got busted. Hell yes my mentor....

http://cbs2chicago.com/...story_273153441.html

Downtown Base-Jumping Parachutists Charged
Misdemeanors For Unidentified Men
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(STNG) CHICAGO Chicago Police charged three people with misdemeanors Saturday in connection to a daredevil stunt earlier this week where two men jumped from a downtown crane and parachuted to the ground.

Joshua Burnett, 39, of Chicago; John Winkelkotter, 39, of Glen Ellyn; and Patrick Walker, 23, of Holland, Mich. were charged with disorderly conduct said police News Affairs Officer Marcel Bright.

One man was picked up by detectives hours after witnesses reported seeing two men parachute -- or BASE-jump -- from a crane that's at least 400 feet tall at the CityFront Plaza at 240 E. Illinois.

The crane is being used to build a 31-story condo development called The Fairbanks.

About 4:30 a.m. Friday, a security guard noticed two people in parachutes descending onto the plaza. According to police reports, the two escaped in a gray Porsche SUV.

The crane, owned by an outside company, is under the supervision of the general contractor working on the condo development. A foreman at the site refused to comment, as did the developer.

Ladders run from the ground to the crane's tower and extended arm, which people speculate was the launching point for the urban daredevils.

There was at least one fence the parachutists likely would have had to scale to get at the crane.

A local parachutist -- who works at a skydiving center but did not want his name used -- said illegal BASE-jumping (an acronym for Building, Antenna, Span and Earth) has caught on in other cities, including Los Angeles and Las Vegas. But he'd never heard of it in Chicago.



(Source: Sun-Times News Group Wire © Chicago Sun-Times 2006. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.)

That's probably because it's never been done in Chicago before.

I know of a few people who have been base jumping in Chicago for a good ten years...The person from the skydive center probaly has never made a dam skydive and picks up the trash around the DZ

http://www.nbc5.com/.../9965554/detail.html

Check out the news clip for NBC 5 Chicago. They sent up a reporter to give you a good view from the launch point.

Would I be wrong to speculate that one person ratted out the other two?

Wow! Your cops and journalists must be real bored for a jump off a crane to get such attention.
Are there no more real criminals in Chicago?

crazy I tell you, crazy. at least they did the math.

I think it will be hard to prove 'public endangerment' charges. I dont think the DA has a sturdy leg to stand on. Good luck boys.

nicrussell: the article quoted states the charge to be "disorderly conduct," not "public endangerment."

joeyramone: i think that perhaps 736 was being a tad sarcastic about BASE not being done in Chicago before.

I get a Chicago news channel, I saw this last night on the news.

You criminals! way to go Johnny Utah.

Fixed it for ya.

>>Would I be wrong to speculate that one person ratted out the other two?<<

Gee, I hope that's not the case . . .

But then, how else are they going to prosecute them? They weren't caught red handed like right after landing or running down a street with their gear. If all they have is a night time video all the jumpers have to say is, "Get stuffed, that isn’t me."

This brings up something else I've often thought about. I doubt anyone really looks at security camera video unless there's a reason to do so. So we've all probably been caught by cameras that no one's actually ever seen.

Lastly, even though the names have been printed in the newspaper we aren't helping ourselves by repeating the names. And if this was 15 years ago several jumpers would have wrote only to suggest that "Artie Alabama" was asleep on their living room floor at the time of the "alleged" jump . . . We may not always get along with each other, but we should all be united in protecting each other from outsiders.

If someone did get ratted out there's a lesson to be learned for all of us. Being ground crew, because you are interested in starting BASE, or just for the laughs, has always been an accepted way to include others. The benefit to jumpers is usually, "Okay, you can come along, but we'll use your car and you drive." This is because getting caught for jumping is mostly a minor thing, but when you include your own vehicle in the mix it can get sticky. We need to explain that a bit better to our ground crews.

It's possible the ground crew may be threatened with the confiscation of the car for the reason it was used in the commission of the crime. If your ground crew is someone you just met there is little incentive for them not to give you up. The best course of action, if you live close enough to the object, is ride a bicycle . . .

NickD
BASE 194

haha I love in that news video that they were starting an investigation because they wanted to know what the individuals were doing and why they were parachuting from a crane, as if it was some sort of evil plot and homeland security was at risk. Though I guess to be fair, for most people the simple answer that its fun probably doesnt compute.

I wonder how many child molesters are running around on parole violations in Chicago?

Sure glad the cops got their shit together and busted people jumping off a crane at 4:30 AM...

guess you guys better use a fatsuit next time

It's actually never been done anywhere. It's all a bunch of stuff made up by us internet bozos that are bored with our jobs but still have to come to work. We sit arround our cubes fabbing video and posting with made up, misspelled names like magot, trying to start an electron fight.

So all you folks rambling on about how it was or is, fess up. It's never been done, you've never done it, and you've never seen it done, period.

Is geesh with a 'g' or a 'j'?

"Drove off in a Porsche" and people say skydiving is becoming a white collar sport...

 

now thats funny...



ha ha he was mine too...

>>Would I be wrong to speculate that one person ratted out the other two?<<

No, they got the other guy's names from the cell phone of the one they caught. Brian Schubert told me that they can't actually use phone records as evidence. Good lawyers should be able to get them off unless they already have admitted to perpetrating the actual abominable crime. The main problem is that the court date is October 20, the day before Bridge Day. They expect to be able to get an extension. I'm sure the judge will understand that the court date conflicts with their previous plans to go jump off a bridge in West Virginia.


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There's no way it was them.

They were way up north hanging out at my house around a good 'ol bonfire... If I can, I'll prove it with video and pictures.

-smd7