AP News article--Chicago area police refuse to evict tenants

The mortgage crisis is hitting renters as landlords go bankrupt. The Cook County Sherriffs and Chicago PD are known for many things, sentiment isn't one of them.

Sheriff in Ill. county won't evict in foreclosures

From Associated Press

October 08, 2008 1:19 PM EDT

CHICAGO - Residents of foreclosed properties in Chicago and other parts of Cook County don't have to worry about deputies forcing them out. Sheriff Tom Dart says that starting Thursday his office won't take part in evictions.

Dart says he's concerned that many of the people being evicted are renters who were unaware that their landlords have been failing to pay their mortgages. He says his deputies have no way of knowing whether they're removing someone who has defaulted on a loan or someone who has been faithfully paying rent.

Dart says he thinks he's the first sheriff in a major metropolitan area to stop such evictions during the ongoing foreclosure crisis.

Dart says the number of mortgage foreclosures in Cook County has skyrocketed and will probably keep rising.

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