While the pandemic has fallen sharply, COVID-19 is also accused of contributing to a record number of deaths due to gun violence.
At 18, Nasee Minniefield had just graduated from high school and had her whole life ahead of him until he was shot and killed on Halloween.
“I really wasn’t right since then,” said Nasee’s grandmother, Donna Minniefield. “I’m numb, I’m sad, it hurts.”
According to the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office, Minniefield was one of 875 people killed in gun violence last year; 78% of the victims were black.
“This is by far the largest total gun homicide I’ve ever had. The only time I got close to that was in 1994, when I had 838 homicides because of gun violence,” he said. Natalia Derevyanny, spokeswoman for the Cook County Medical Examiner’s Office.
“I see so many on TV and I’ve watched so many innocent children – children are killed and I would never have dreamed of a day in my life that I would feel the pain I feel,” Minniefield said.
Deaths from gun violence were not the only record for this year. Cook County also recorded a total of 16,049 deaths in 2020, which was also a record.
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These numbers were increased by the 8,192 lives lost due to deaths caused by COVID-19 infection.
Pandemic stress is also considered a contributing factor to the unprecedented number of homicides during the year.
Chicago police have also released the final crime number for 2020, which showed that shootings and crimes increased by more than 50% in 2020.
In 2020, there were 769 crimes, a considerable increase compared to the 495 crimes registered in 2019.
In terms of shootings, the city recorded 3,261 last year, a big jump from 2,140 shots in 2019. The number of shooting victims rose to 4,033 in 2020, from 2,598 in 2019.
This illustrates a fiery year for violence after three years of progress, in which many innocent children were killed and some police officers also became targets of gunfire.
Nearly a quarter of the murders took place on the West Side.
City leaders and a new Chicago police superintendent were forced to address civil unrest in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic, implementing several community policing strategies among other tactics. But police say the overall crime is down.
Superintendent of Police David Brown promises to make improvements when it comes to building community partnerships and strengthening investigations.
“I think our savior will be vaccination against COVID,” said Dr. Faran Bokhari, head of trauma at Cook County Hospital. “I think people are so tired of being inside and not being able to do what they usually do.”
Another worrying statistic is the high number of all-time deaths due to opioid overdoses reported by the Cook County Examiner’s Office. According to the ME, there are 1,599 confirmed cases so far and potentially with another 500 toxic results pending.
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“Indeed, our worst fears were, you know, you know, imagined – that we’ve seen an increasing number of opioid deaths,” said Dr. Steven Aks, a hospital doctor. of Cook County and Toxicologist.
But behind all the statistics, there are real families who have lost their loved ones and are suffering. These families carry the pain of 2020 into the new year, while hoping for healing.
The new year of crime
Two people were hit by stray gunfire just after ringing in the New Year.
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About 12 minutes past midnight, Chicago police said a man and a woman were sitting in the living room of a house when shots were fired from outside, hitting them.
The shootings took place in block 8700 of South Buffalo Avenue, in the South Chicago neighborhood.
The 51-year-old man is now in critical condition with a gunshot wound to the head, and a 51-year-old woman has a head injury. No one is under arrest.
A 41-year-old man was killed in the first homicide in Chicago of the new year.
Police said he was driving over 47 and King Drive in the city’s Bronzeville neighborhood overnight when someone started firing.
The man was shot in the neck and crashed his car.
Police did not make any arrests.
On Friday morning, Superintendent Brown issued a statement saying:
“2020 was a perfect storm.
Public safety is a practical endeavor that requires not only the police, but also street workers, religious leaders, courts, community organizations and residents working together. However, the criminal justice ecosystem has been deeply affected and disrupted by the global coronavirus pandemic and the death of George Floyd.
The increase in fatal shootings and homicides is not exclusive to Chicago, as many major city chiefs and law enforcement officers face unprecedented levels of violence across the country. Our Chicago police officers have faced an unprecedented set of circumstances in the fight against an increase in violent crime, made even more difficult by the fact that they have to fight a health pandemic while facing prolonged periods. of civil unrest and heavy robberies.
Our officers were themselves subjected to violent crime, as shootings of CPD officers increased by 558% since 2015. As of 1 January 2020, 79 officers were shot in 2020, with 10 officers being shot.
As the rest of our city and nation faced a global pandemic, the Chicago Police Department also recorded more than 2,450 confirmed cases of COVID-19 across the Department. Unfortunately, four of our CPD officers succumbed to COVID-related illnesses.
During the summer, we pivoted our crime-fighting strategy toward a city-level approach to resource implementation in areas of high violence. This strategic change has had a positive impact on public safety and has slowed the pace of monthly crimes that accelerated in the first half of 2020. We have also dedicated more resources that will strengthen our narcotic investigations to medium and high level drug traffickers. drugs, which have been shown to serve as major factors in violence.
The best way to reduce crime and violence is to prevent it from happening in the first place by building bridges and community trust. Community engagement has become a central component of our approach to public safety at the unit level, from the Office of Detectives to city-level community security teams and critical incident response teams. This includes Rollin ‘Rec events held over the summer in partnership with the Chicago Parks district, along with the upcoming launch of the Athletic Police and Arts League in 2021. We also expanded the Neighborhood Policing Initiative from two to five districts last summer and will expand to other districts in 2021.
As we close a tumultuous year and prepare for 2021, our department’s vision for a safer Chicago will be rooted in a five-pillar strategy for strategic change: Building community trust, Changing transformation through reform, The Welfare Officer, Ensuring safety and Strengthen investigations.
The Chicago Police Department has a moral obligation to respect the dignity and sanctity of human life. This dignity and respect must be reflected in every aspect of how we operate and must permeate every aspect of our organizational culture.
Finally, I want to say how proud I am to be associated with the men and women of the Chicago Police Department. No matter the hardships, no matter the danger, they continue to be on duty every day and night to serve and protect this great city. ”
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