Breakings News! Mary can't be stopped! It must really be her!
Hmm.. and they weren't going to release the guy's name to keep him safe. What does that say?
'Virgin Mary' image returns
By Patrick Rucker and Nancy Ryan
Tribune staff reporters
Published May 6, 2005, 2:30 PM CDT
An image some considered to be that of the Virgin Mary reappeared today after vanishing under a layer of paint state highway workers had applied to it.
A man late Thursday night allegedly used black shoe polish to deface the image, on a concrete wall of the Fullerton Avenue underpass of the Kennedy Expressway. The Illinois Department of Transportation responded by having a crew use brown paint to cover the graffiti. In doing so, they painted over the entire image.
All that remained by daybreak was a freshly painted outline, surrounded by flowers and candles of what, in the three weeks since the image first appeared, had become a makeshift shrine.
But the faithful turned out, and one or more people somehow began to remove the paint. It was not known how they did it, but by afternoon, the image was back largely intact and apparently with no sign of the graffiti that had marred it.
Police said they arrested Victor Gonzalez, 37, of Chicago shortly after witnesses saw him use black shoe polish around 11:30 p.m. Thursday to paint the words "Big Lie" and what appeared to be a crude swastika over the image.
Gonzalez was arrested riding a bicycle at Diversey and California Avenues, a few blocks northwest of the underpass. He was charged with misdemeanor criminal damage to state-supported property, police spokesman David Banks said.
The suspect was released on bond this morning and was assigned a June 21 court hearing. Authorities gave his address as the 2700 block of North Menard Avenue, but family members there said the man is a transient who has no permanent residence.
They said after Gonzalez was freed on bond, he told them he was going to a West Side hospital where he previously had been treated for psychological problems.
Police were initially reluctant to release Gonzalez's name because of concerns outrage over the defacement might jeopardize his safety. "This could be a nasty thing," Banks said. Meanwhile, IDOT ordered the image painted over.
"Basically, it became graffiti and that is how we treated it," said Mike Claffey, spokesman for the agency. "We were trying to be hands off and treat it like any other roadside memorial, but that changed overnight."
Word of the incident spread quickly, and people started showing up to look and pray as early as 4 a.m., CLTV reported.
Several, like Gonzalo Izurieta, were upset.
"There's a lot of people in this country that are Catholic, that believe in the Virgin Mary. It was wrong what they did. It was wrong," Izurieta said.
Another passerby, Corey Higgs, told CLTV, "They found the Virgin in the grilled cheese (sandwich), they found Jesus in some French fries, whatever, you know, that's great. If that's what people want to believe in, if they want to say that's something significant, that's fine."
The large stain on the concrete wall drew national attention after pilgrims began gathering at the site in mid-April to look at what they believe was the image of the Blessed Mother. They came alone or in large groups, leaving behind flowers and candles.
Believers said the stain showed the outline of the Virgin Mary's face wearing a cloak. Some said it more closely resembled a chess pawnif not just grime.
Even Cardinal Francis George commented on the shrine April 25: "If it's helpful in reminding people of the Virgin Mary's care for us and love for us, that's wonderful."
Tribune wires contributed to this story.
