Chicago suffered yet another bloody Memorial Day weekend with at least 51 people shot, including 12 who were fatally shot. The widespread gun violence occurred despite dozens of “peacekeepers’ patrolling the Windy City in an attempt to decrease bloodshed.
WFLD reported that by Sunday night, 12 people had been shot and killed during Memorial Day weekend.
HeyJacksass.com, a site dedicated to gun violence statistics in Chicago, reported that there were 10 people shot and killed in Chicago on Saturday. The site noted that in the more than 10 years of covering gun violence in Chicago, there were only three other days that tallied 10 or more homicides: 6/27/2020: 10 killed, 7/4/2020: 11 killed, 5/31/2020: 18 killed.
There were at least 39 people wounded in shootings around the city, according to the Chicago Sun-Times.
Of the wounded in Memorial Day weekend violence was a 2-year-old girl, who purportedly shot herself with a gun she found.
Around 6:15 p.m. on Sunday, a toddler found a gun in the Chicago neighborhood of Rogers Park. The baby accidentally shot herself, according to police.
WLS Reported, “Police said the 2-year-old girl found a handgun and accidentally discharged it, shooting herself in the hand. She was transported to St. Francis Hospital in good condition.”
At 9:50 p.m. on Saturday, a 14-year-old girl was reportedly standing on the sidewalk with a group of people in the neighborhood of Englewood when shots were fired. The girl was grazed in the right arm by the bullet, but she allegedly refused treatment.
One person was reportedly shot and killed on Saturday less than two blocks from the West Side home of newly-elected Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson.
Days earlier, the progressive Democrat mayor unveiled his plan to cut down on violence in Chicago.
“My administration’s top priority is making sure there is a comprehensive, whole of government strategy across our city and that its making people safe,” Johnson said at a news conference on Thursday.
In anticipation of Memorial Day weekend violence, Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker announced on Tuesday that there would be 30 “peacekeepers” to try to stop crime.
The initiative called the Citywide Crisis Prevention and Response Unit (CPRU) will send peacekeepers into Chicago streets to “provide essential assistance in de-escalation, conflict resolution, and crisis support across Chicago.”
Within hours of opening beaches in Chicago, the city was forced to shut down the popular North Avenue Beach after gunshots erupted when two groups of teens confronted each other.
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