Chicago City Wire

The man now charged with murder in last week’s fatal Magnificent Mile “crash and grab” was reportedly on the payroll of Chicago CRED, a state-funded violence prevention nonprofit backed by Gov. JB Pritzker.

Kellen McMiller, 35, was one of five men in a stolen vehicle that crashed into a Honda CR-V while fleeing a burglary at the Louis Vuitton store located on the “Miracle Mile” at 919 North Michigan Avenue, killing 40-year-old Mark Arceta, a father-to-be on his way to his final work shift before paternity leave. 

Just six days prior, McMiller stood alongside Pritzker at a violence prevention press event in Englewood, wearing a “peacekeeper” uniform. 

Kellen McMiller, charged in a fatal Magnificent Mile crash-and-grab, poses with Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker at a “peacekeeper” event in Englewood on Sept. 5, 2025. The photo was later removed from a state press release following McMiller’s arrest. | The State of Illinois Newsroom

According to sources familiar with the case, McMiller was also a FLIP (Flatlining Violence Inspires Peace) worker affiliated with Chicago CRED, an “an anti-gun violence organization" led by former Obama administration U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan and housed at Northwestern University’s Institute for Policy Research.  

"Chicago CRED works with community leaders, like-minded organizations, and hundreds of young men and women to radically reduce gun violence and bring hope back to Chicago," Chicago CRED's website reads. 

The case has intensified scrutiny over Chicago CRED and similar state-funded initiatives, raising questions about how taxpayer dollars are being used and whether politics has outpaced public safety.

“CRED uses partner organizations that receive millions in state taxpayer funds,” Breakthrough Ideas CEO and AM 560 radio host Jeanne Ives said in a post on X. 

The FY2026 Illinois budget allocates over $36 million in state taxpayer funds to CRED-affiliated community groups, including $2.8 million to the MAAFA Redemption Project and $15.4 million to After School Matters.

McMiller’s case reveals a deeper flaw in well-meaning programs that lack adequate oversight and screening. Critics are raising questions about how a suspected violent offender with four outstanding warrants was hired by an anti-violence initiative and permitted to appear alongside the state’s highest-ranking official.

Conservative activist and real estate broker Mark Weyermuller pointed to Pritzker and Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson following the incident.

“They have blood on their hands,” Wyermuller told Chicago City Wire. 

Prtizker’s office has not responded to questions about how McMiller appeared in the photo, which was later removed from a press release from the governor’s office following his arrest. 

Former Riverside Police Chief Tom Weitzel called Prtizker’s team “incompetent.”

“The funds spent on the peacekeepers program could be better directed toward police operations, equipment, training, education, and technology,” Weitzel told CWB Chicago. “These investments would significantly impact crime reduction, of that I am certain.”

Crime scene tape surrounds the Louis Vuitton store on the Magnificent Mile after a crash-and-grab burglary on September 11, 2025, that ended in a fatal car crash during the suspects' attempted getaway. (Mark Weyermuller)