With thick skin and a small ego, Dan Kuecker shares his thoughts on issues that simply interest him, while learning a bit more himself. Please do the same.

On Murder in Chicago [With Update]

On Murder in Chicago [With Update]

Dan Kuecker
Domestic Laws and Policy

Here I sit the day after Christmas, enjoying the many blessings God has so graciously provided.  In the midst of shedding tears of joy in celebration of Jesus' miracle birth, tears of sadness also streak down my cheeks while thinking about families enduring a constant barrage of tragedy throughout the world.  As we absorb the continued reporting about the senseless killings in Syria and other foreign countries, I can't help but also reflect on the lost lives and the terrorized neighborhoods in America's third largest metropolitan area.

Picturesque Chicago struggles with increased homicides in 2016

When I search "Chicago" in Google, the top three stories report that nearly 50 people were shot over the Christmas weekend, with at least 12 of them killed.  The one story compared these devastating numbers with other deadly holiday weekends in Chicago this year, reporting at least 69, 50, and 65 shootings over the Memorial Day, Independence Day, and Labor Day weekends.

Two teenagers shot on a basketball court in Chicago.

A few statistics struck me

So far this year, over 4,300 people in Chicago have been shot.  That's one person every two hours.  This total is a significant increase from last year's total of under 3,000 shootings.

Homicides in Chicago this year are approaching 800, with over 700 by firearm.  Just staggering:  every 11 hours in Chicago, a person is murdered.  By comparison, last year's total was about 500.

Who are the murder victims?

Seventy-eight percent are Blacks, Hispanics 17%.  Over 91% are male.

Are the assailants arrested and prosecuted?

It appears not.  The 2016 statistics show that police are able to identify and charge a suspect in only about 20% of the cases.  Why is that?  Does it relate to the challenge of finding witnesses to cooperate?

Is the so-called Ferguson effect playing a role in the increased number of shootings?  Possibly, but more data will be needed to determine what, if any impact, it is having.  Here's one noteworthy statistic:  Through the first quarter of 2016, police stops in Chicago dropped by 90%, from about 160,000 during the first quarter of 2015 to about 21,000 during the same time period this year.

With the controversy surrounding police shootings over the past couple years, you might also be interested in the following numbers:  Chicago police have shot 25 people so far this year, killing 11 of them.  Both numbers appear similar to last year, but lower than the totals in each of the previous 6 years.  For a detailed examination of police shootings, see the Chicago Tribune article here.

I don't have the answers to why violent crime seems to be increasing in many cities across the U.S., and I probably have more questions than potential answers on how to reverse the trend.  But I do know that to achieve success, we will have to not only honestly and courageously define the problems, but also work together as a community and nation to identify and implement effective solutions.

UPDATE on December 29, 2016

This week we also learned that for the third year in a row, Illinois lost more residents than any other state.  In 2016, nearly 115,000 residents departed the state, continuing a significant upward trend that started about five years ago.  By comparison, about 28,000 residents left Michigan, 12,000 left Wisconsin and Indiana, 6,000 left Missouri, and 3,000 left Iowa.  According to the Chicago Tribune, the reasons for the exodus included high levels of taxes, unemployment, and crime.  The Tribune predicts the shrinking Illinois population to continue.

For additional information on this topic, please click on the hyperlinked bullet points below:

2016: Top 10 Lessons Learned

2016: Top 10 Lessons Learned
On Russian Hacking

On Russian Hacking