Chicago Tallies 40 Murders In January
By Chuck Sudo in News on Jan 29, 2013 4:55PM
With three days left in January Chicago's 2013 homicide total already stands at 40. That puts this year's homicide rate on a pace with last year's total of 506. By comparison, New York City, with over twice as many people, has only recorded three 20 homicides in January.
A weekend of violence that saw seven people killed put the city on a pace for its highest January homicide total since 2002, when 45 people were murdered. Police have long claimed the homicide rate was a reflection of Chicago's street gang proliferation and easy access to assault weapons.
On the latter, the Police Department announced they've seized 574 guns in January—124 in the last week. Deputy Commissioner Al Wysingers told ABC 7 that total is more than three times the amount seized in either New York City or Los Angeles.
Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy, meanwhile, was in Washington Monday to take part in a meeting at the White House on gun violence. McCarthy was among a group including the police chiefs of Aurora, Colo., Oak Creek, Wis. and Newtown, Conn., the towns that made headlines last year for mass shootings.
President Barack Obama convened the meeting to encourage law enforcement officials to lobby Congress on gun control legislation. The President said he wants their opinions on how to prevent shootings like those that occurred last year and to fight daily violence in cities across the country.