Gabriel didn’t understand what the police were supposed to be doing. He had been born on the North Side, in Cabrini-Green, and worked the front desk at a church on the South Side until he could find a more stable job. In his opinion, it wasn’t that police officers didn’t do anything at all; it’s that when they did, they always seemed to be out to get him.
For instance, there was that time on the train. Some guys had hopped on while he was riding and were making a lot of noise, disturbing the other passengers. It wasn’t a big deal; after a little bit, the group decided to switch to another car. More likely than not, it was because of the police officers who entered Gabriel’s car right after, looking for the young men. They were too late, but the officers didn’t know that. At least that must’ve been why they approached Gabriel, standing on the train in his hoodie, and started yelling at him. Gabriel tried to keep calm, but it was more than he could take.
“Why do you think it was me?” he asked the officers. “’Cause I’m black?”
The police left him alone after that. At least, those officers did, on that day. Later, Gabriel would be arrested.
He was driving down the street when another car sped past him, ducking between the lanes. CPD squad cars came rushing after, sirens blaring, but instead of continuing after the first car, the officers wanted him to pull over. Gabriel complied and stopped his vehicle. Officers grabbed him, pulled him out of the car, and roughly fastened a pair of very tight handcuffs to his wrists. They asked him his name. He told them. They asked him where he was coming from. He told them. Eventually, the police realized they had the wrong car. They took the handcuffs off and Gabriel was free to go. They never apologized.
Last summer, there was a murder in the neighborhood. A man had been shot and killed. The case was still open when Gabriel ran into the police again, this time because he was being pulled over for a broken taillight. Cops always had the resources to pull off traffic stops, he said, but had nothing to offer a community dealing with a murderer on the loose. To him, it just didn’t make sense.
“You’re not going to get no incentive for getting someone for a taillight, you know. But you will be getting a badge of honor if you find a killer.”
— Gabriel Vanderbilt, 25, receptionist
As of October 2019, Gabriel said he said police had still not solved the crime.