Chicago is one of those cities where it’s like shooting fish in the barrel on pointing out the ineffectiveness of progressive policies. It seems like there’s no end in sight to the violent crime, murders, shootings, etc. On January 3rd, 2025, the Chicago Police Department rolled out their 2024 CPD “In Review Report,” and it’s actually somewhat positive.
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The Chicago Police Department brought 2024 to a close with reductions in homicides, shooting incidents and shooting victims, all marking the lowest levels since 2019. Overall, homicides are down 8% year to date. There’s a 7% drop in shooting incidents and a 4% decline in the number of shooting victims. December marked the fifth consecutive month of a decline in overall robberies.
This significant progress is thanks in part to the hardworking men and women of the Chicago Police Department, as well as collaboration across the city with residents, community groups and faith-based organizations, continuing CPD’s priority of investing in the community to grow trust and reduce violence.
“This year, the Chicago Police Department continued to drive down violent crime while focusing on the victims affected by the trauma of these crimes,” said Superintendent Larry Snelling in a statement. “The efforts we made set the foundation for strengthened public safety for years to come.”
Okay, so there’s been a drop in homicides by 8% and 7% drop in shooting incidents. That’s actually positive news coming out of the Windy City for a change.
Task forces are what they’re attributing to some of these remarkable numbers. “Earlier this year, CPD unveiled a strategy to address recent robberies and motor vehicle thefts,” the report stated. “This plan features four pillars – technology, focused missions, public engagement and accountability – to raise awareness and encourage prevention. The Robbery Task Force, a collaboration between the Bureau of Detectives, the Bureau of Patrol and the Bureau of Counterterrorism, has worked diligently to address robbery patterns through on-the-ground missions and investigations.”
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What else is CPD celebrating? The removal of over 12,000 firearms from “the streets.” Well that and the 900+ firearms they received at so-called “turn-in” events. We could probably all agree that there being 12,000 less arms in the hands of criminals is a good thing. The report also stated that 2024 was the fourth consecutive year where more than 12k firearms were taken into authorities’ possession.
What are the hard numbers and stats? From the report, they dish out the December 2024 “crime statistics.”
- Month to date, shooting incidents are down 18%, and there’s a 7% drop in the number of shooting victims.
- Officers recovered 1,028 firearms this month – an average of 33 firearms each day this December.
- Based on Uniform Crime Reporting (UCR) figures, Part I crimes have dropped 21% over December 2023 and there’s a 5% year to date decline. Violent crimes have fallen 22% month to date, with a 6% decline over last year, while property crimes are down 21% compared to December 2023, with a 5% drop year to date.
- Year to date, overall transit crime is on par with 2023, while property crime on the CTA is down 12% compared to December 2023 with an 11% decline year to date.
In 2024 CPD notes there were 2,282 shootings, 2,758 shooting victims, and 573 murders. All of those numbers are on a decline since 2021, where there were 3,553 shootings, 4,385 shooting victims, and 804 murders.
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In October of 2024, one report has Chicago ranking #10 on a list of cities with the highest murder rates.
PBS however reported that there’s been a drop in murders across the country. “I think the scope of the decline in murder stands out, certainly,” Jeff Asher, a Crime Analyst said during an interview. “Right now, we have over 300 cities’ worth of data through October showing murder down 16 percent. Last year, the FBI had murdered down 12 percent.”
While Chicago is celebrating their drop in violent crime – which is a good thing – we have to acknowledge that the entire country is seeing a downward shift. The national average is a 16% drop in homicide, while Chicago only saw an 8% drop or half.
One thing that was noticeably absent in the CPD report was the mention of law-abiding gun owners. Just the other day we brought up statistics from the Crime Prevention Research Center talking about the rise of carriers in the U.S. CPRC’s report noted a spike in permit-to-carry holders in 2022, with the growth slowing into a slight decline, with more states becoming permitless. Another report from CPRC found a substantial number of people actively arm themselves with regularity.
What are these rates of carry doing, if anything, to affect violent crime in the U.S.? I think we know the answer.
Chicago, good on you for achieving better crime numbers. But your murder rate decrease is only half of the decrease of the average of those 500 + cities saw when the data was compiled in October. Before the Windy City goes on to pat itself too hard on the back, we should be looking at the phenomenon across the country holistically. That said, Chicago hasn’t seen such low rates since 2019, which is good, and this is about as many Kudos! you’re going to get from me until you’re not in the ranking at all when violence is being discussed.
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