By Gloria Reza
@GloriaReza8
Chicago Police Department crime data shows the city to be among the deadliest in the US, with a 3 percent increase in homicides, putting it on pace to possibly surpass last year’s record totals.
Statistics regarding Chicago homicides in 2022 indicate 43 homicides in February, bringing the total to 92 since the beginning of the year. This is one more than the first two months of 2021, which ended with approximately 800 homicides, the most in a quarter-century.
There has been a reported increase in violent crimes and overall property crime compared to 2021. CPD Supt. David Brown responded to the alarming rates at a press conference earlier this year: “Officers and detectives across the Department are working hand-in-hand with our fellow law enforcement and prosecutorial partners to prevent crime in communities across the city.”
Some experts say the high homicide rate is linked to a lack of trust in the police department, according to members of the community, academics and police officers interviewed by WBEZ Chicago. A survey conducted by Gallup poll from early June to mid-July 2020, shows public trust in the police has dropped five percentage points to 48 percent. The drop in confidence came after George Floyd, was killed in Minneapolis at the end of May 2020 by the police, which inspired months of civil unrest nationwide.