Chicago has now closed August as its deadliest month in over 20 years with 90 murders as of Wednesday night. Rates of gun violence in the city have triggered an alarming situation for the city’s police authorities and demanded the governor’s immediate actions on the matter.
Every week for the past month, the wind city has experienced at least one murder or shooting due to gun violence, closing August with alarming numbers of both authorities and citizens.
According to police officials, 90 murders happened in August with a total of 427 shooting victims and 384 registered shootings. These numbers add to the concerning violence rates the city has experienced over the past year, with 468 murders and over 2,848 shooting victims.
As the New York Times reports, the nation’s third-largest city has more homicides in 2016 than New York and Los Angeles combined, making it the most susceptible city to gun violence.
Chicago’s gun violence incidents have taken place primarily on the South and West sides of the city, among African-Americans in the vast majority of the cases. Last month a teenager lost his life due to a shooting, a day before turning 17-years old and a mother of 4 lost her life when she was pushing a stroller with her 7-week old daughter.
The city is under an on-going investigation to the Chicago Police Department, and pressure is being made upon Governor Bruce Rauner and his willingness to declare the city under a state of emergency.
Deadliest month in two decades
In a city of 2.6 million citizens, 14 hundred are involved in gun violence incidents in the city according to Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson, who assures these individuals drive 85 percent of the violence in Chicago.
Battles over gun control and possession are being held in the city with most shootings in 2016, according to initial reports the homicides rates have incremented in a 50 percent when compared to last year’s numbers.
As of January first, the Chicago Police Department had recovered one gun per hour throughout the year and after August the Police Department recovered more than 6,000 illegal guns.
Superintendent Johnson announced in a press conference. The wind city recovers more illegal guns than New York and Los Angeles combined, which is a concerning number of weapons being managed illegally.
The Justice Department is currently investigating the city’s Police Department after reports of misconduct and discipline among Chicago’s officers have been questioned as a way of controlling the concerning issue in the city.
At the same time, protesters and non-violence groups have been pushing Governor Rauner to declare Chicago under a state of emergency and call the National Guard to take control on the matter.
Governor Rauner has informed the situation is being evaluated, yet the answer doesn’t seem to involve the United States National Guard.
“If that means bringing the National Guard, we’ve discussed that and analyzed it. We’ve discussed it with the National Guard. No thoughtful leader thinks that’s a good idea or would really provide a solution. In fact, it may exacerbate other problems,” said Governor Rauner after being questioned by media workers.
The Chicago Police is currently working on a list of 14,000 individuals who are at higher risks of participating in gun violence due to prior offenses or crimes, as well, as investigating the upper risks of victims in the city.
As ABC News reports, the two suspects who were being investigated for Nikea Aldridge’s death, the mother of four who got caught up in a shooting, were within the Police Department’s list.
Concerned citizens are requesting Togher gun control laws on the rising situation that seems to affect only certain parts of the wind city where gun violence continues to rise.
Johnson explained to the press that shootings happen only in the West and South sides of the city. Meanwhile, the rest of Chicago doesn’t seem to experience that much violence.
“The majority of Chicago is fairly safe from this particular problem, that 85 percent, they choose that lifestyle, they choose it,” said Superintendent Johnson in a press meeting.
The American Medical Association, who claims the incidents as a public health crisis, is currently working on eliminating a 20-year-old law that prevents the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), to study gun violence as a medical matter.
Activists in the city are fighting to create awareness and a plan to avoid this type of violence to continue in the city, protesting in social media campaigns with the hashtag #EnoughIsEnough and seeking the governor’s support.
In a recent press conference, Mayor Rahm Emanuel, ensure citizens a plan is being made to fight this crisis and avoid innocent people from being killed in a random shooting. According to Emanuel, the project is due to be announced in mid-Septemeber to citizens.
However, the numbers continue to increase and almost on a daily matter a person gets shot due to a random shooting in Chicago.
Source: The New York Times