Some residents of Highland Park, Illinois, told CNN that they recognized the suspect in the Robert E. Crime III shooting, after police posted photos of him because of his characteristic appearance, claiming they had recently seen him for the area.
Eric Januszewski and Kate McCarney live just one block from the shooting scene and went out Tuesday morning with their rescue dog Biff to see the crime scene. A day earlier, Januszewski was at his home during the parade, he heard gunshots and saw the stampede of fleeing people. He offered water and refreshments to police during the later hours while cooking in the sun.
They both recognized the suspect, Crimo, from previous clashes, mostly for his colored hair and prominent tattoos on his face. At a recent carnival in Highwood, Januszewski said he commented to Crimo about the tattoos on his face, noting that they were “quite a compromise.” Crimo agreed and then told Januszewski to take a look at his SoundCloud account, he said.
Ellen Cohen and Rob Phillips (courtesy of Rob Phillips)
Other neighbors who were at the July 4 parade reflected on the chaotic scene that occurred once the shooting began.
Ellen Cohen and Rob Phillips attended the parade and set up their chairs near their start, one block from Central Avenue, where the shooting finally took place. They wanted to avoid crowds.
They took a smiling selfie and enjoyed watching a group of kids ride their bikes down the parade route just minutes before the official parade started. About 10-15 minutes after the parade started, they heard what they thought were fireworks and finally realized they were being shot and ran from the area. Ellen left her cell phone behind and returned hours later to retrieve it.
Robert E. Crime III. (Highland Park Police Department)
For two neighbors, a last-minute decision to skip the parade made them wonder what would have happened if they hadn’t changed their minds.
Anisah and Steve Mihaljevic live on Central Avenue and Linden Avenue, just one block from the parade route. They were in Skokie, Illinois, visiting their parents Monday morning and were thinking of returning home for the parade at the invitation of some friends. But they decided not to do so, partly out of laziness, a decision that made them wonder, “What if?”
“It was so random that we ended up not being here,” Anisah told CNN, sitting on a bench near the crime scene. “It was one of those random decisions that ends up changing your life.”
They noted that last month, on June 11, there was a March For Our Lives demonstration in downtown Highland Park and Sunset Park, where the parade ends. Her daughters attended and carried signs calling for the change.