By: Matt Rosenberg and Ted Dabrowski
Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot’s primary loss shows that big city officials nationwide can’t keep sweeping escalating major crimes under the rug. Downplaying the bloodshed risks their careers.
Lightfoot resoundingly lost in a city where the homicide rate jumped 39 percent compared to 2019.
That should terrify the mayors of cities like New Orleans and Milwaukee, where the jumps have exceeded 100 percent. Or those in cities like Pittsburgh, Toledo, Atlanta and Las Vegas. Their murder rates have climbed 92, 81, 75, and 73 percent, respectively.
Those numbers are some of the findings in Wirepoints’ recent 75-city murder report that shows Chicago and nearly all of the nation’s 19 other top “homicide hubs” in 2022 had notably higher murder rates than in 2019. Killing skyrocketed after nationwide urban riots in 2020 following the death of George Floyd.
The murder rate climbed about 50 percent or more in 10 of the nation’s 20 worst murder capitals. In 15 of the 20 top murder hubs, the rate climbed 25 percent or more. It’s anybody’s guess when the killing in these cities will subside to below 2019 levels – and then drop lower still, as is so urgently needed.
What happened to drive up murder rates? Post-George Floyd, mayors and city councils were blown off course by the sound and fury of anti-police activists. They backpedaled furiously away from proactive policing, and cops have taken the hint by transferring elsewhere, retiring, or simply de-policing. Prosecutors and judges are also responsible. They’ve gone light on felony defendants and felony convicts, too often letting them out to commit new major crimes including murder. Constituents have paid the price with their own blood or that of loved ones or neighbors.
Constant spin wasn’t enough for Chicago’s one-term mayor, done in by crime
In Chicago, outgoing one-term Mayor Lightfoot insisted murder and shootings were down, but she was comparing 2022 to one of the worst years in recent history, 2021. Even prominent journalists joined in the “nothing to see here” charade, but crime-weary voters repudiated Lightfoot and their message is reverberating nationally. It didn’t help that in 2022 Chicago tallied a nation-leading 697 murders versus 500 in 2019.
Wirepoints’ national murder report shows several other reasons Lightfoot’s attempted spin failed:
- The Windy City topped the nation in total murders for the 11th-year in a row in 2022.
- The city’s 2022 murder rate was 25.8 per 100,000 versus 18.6 per 100,000 in 2019. That’s 39 percent worse.
- Among the nation’s 20 biggest cities, Chicago ranked second highest in 2022 murder rate.
- Chicago’s homicide rate was 5 times higher than New York’s. Chicago would have suffered just 140 murders instead of 697 if it had had New York’s rate of 5.2 per 100,000.
Lightfoot alone doesn’t shoulder the blame for Chicago’s rising murder rate. Prosecutors under Cook County State’s Attorney Kim Foxx and local jurists under Cook County Chief Judge Timothy Evans have worsened the damage. They’ve recklessly granted lenience to felony defendants and convicts later charged with murders or other major crimes after being questionably released.
Murders proliferate in New Orleans, Philadelphia – as leadership fails
In New Orleans, Mayor LaToya Cantrell has shown no leadership in dealing with her city’s gravely worsening deadly violence. The city had the nation’s highest murder rate in 2022 – a stunning 74.3 per 100,000. That’s 139 percent higher compared to 2019’s 31 per 100,000.
Pressed for answers early this year in a national interview, Cantrell could only resort to blaming covid and guns. A recall effort against her has turned in enough signatures to force a public vote. But it’s unclear if the measure will qualify for the ballot.
Like in Chicago, responsibility for runaway violence in New Orleans is shared by prosecutors. The city’s first progressive prosecutor Jason Williams took office in 2021 and vowed to be “more selective” about prosecutions. He delivered. The percentage of violent felonies accepted for prosecution dropped to 21 percent in 2021 from 57 percent in 2019. This month, the city learned that a top assistant prosecutor in New Orleans shockingly dropped 15 felony gun charges and courtroom transcripts show she was in effect distributing what a local crime nonprofit’s leader called “get out of jail free” cards.
The City of Philadelphia suffered 516 murders in 2022, more than any other city except Chicago. Killings have gotten so bad that officials have debated bringing back the controversial police practice called “stop and frisk.” It hasn’t happened yet, but that such a politically reviled, yet legitimate, practice was again on the table reveals how serious Philadelphia’s problems have become. As in other high-homicide cities, Philadelphia’s District Attorney, Larry Krasner, has focused on the rights of the accused and social programs instead of tough prosecutions and sentencing.
Data from Krasner’s office shows a sharp drop in the conviction rate for weapons offenses tried by his staff in recent years. There has also been a large jump in weapons cases withdrawn or dismissed by his prosecutors. Unsurprisingly, Philadelphia murders reached a record high of 562 in 2021. Krasner blamed the stunning climb in homicides on covid and shutdowns of after-school and arts programs. But his excuses for the city’s violence were torpedoed by 2022 year-end data. With Covid largely in the rear-view mirror and programs restored, Philadelphia’s homicide rate was still 32.7 – up nearly 50 percent compared to 2019.
Cantrell and Krassner both won re-election with less than 30 percent of registered voters casting ballots in 2021. Off year contests have notoriously small turnout and the influence of disciplined voting blocks like public employee unions is great. But even there, the insulation is peeling away. Lightfoot lost last month in an off-year primary with just 35 percent voter turnout.
Gaslighting constituents during the Great Unravelling
The ugly details vary from one murder hub to another, but the thrust is the same.
The “social justice” for violent defendants and convicts that’s advanced by mayors, council members, prosecutors, activists, and media too often results in trauma and injury or death for victims. The forbidden truth is that progressive politicians actually care little for black lives – even though in big cities like Chicago the victims and perpetrators of murder are disproportionately black.
The nation’s Great Unravelling began in 2020 after George Floyd. Where murders have continued to worsen as a result of that, too many elected officials have been looking the other way and gaslighting the public.
But it’s not working any more. The house of cards is beginning to collapse. Even President Biden is telling Democrats to get tough on crime.
Lightfoot’s fate could very well be a harbinger of what’s to come.
Read more from Wirepoints:
- Don’t let violence prevention programs become a fatal distraction in the quest to make Chicago safe again
- More cops on Chicago’s streets won’t help until criminals are prosecuted and sentenced
- So much for Chicago transit’s ‘anti-crime’ initiatives. 2022’s violent crime exceeded 2019, despite 46% plunge in riders
- Chicagoans are shooting back – and it’s not going to stop until leaders lead
- Chicago’s pursuit of ‘criminal justice reform’ an utter failure: Windy City homicides top nation for 11th year in a row with crime still rising.
- Chicago, New Orleans were the nation’s murder capitals in 2022 – A Wirepoints survey of America’s 75 largest cities
Mark joined Jeff Daly to talk about why Gov. Pritzker and his administration keep denying the obvious: that Illinois is losing people. They get away with it because the media doesn’t do its job to question them. But people are moving out, and it’s easy to understand why. Illinois’ jobs climate is one of the nation’s worst. The public unions have too much power over politics and government policy. And Illinoisans simply can’t trust their politicians to spend tax dollars properly.
Mark joined the Ray Stevens Show to discuss 23 state policies that hostile governments love. Also, what is the end game with open borders considering the $6 billion spent on illegal immigration in Illinois so far? That includes all state, local, and federal costs for most of the same services that citizens have with over 600,000 illegal border crossers — about 40,000 of which are in Chicago.
Ted joined Shaun Thompson to talk about the irresponsible spending of Chicago and CPS, the fact that Mayor Johnson is breaking his promise to not raise property taxes, why so many businesses and people that are fleeing Illinois, why we can’t push solutions until politicians recognize the state’s problems, and more.
“Unfathomable.”
What happens to other mayors in homicide hot spot cities? It all depends on how educated, aware, and scared the voters are.
Nothing will change. Lightfoot didn’t do a very good job as mayor but neither did Rahm, or Daley or many others before her. They mayor, whomever it is, is not the real problem and alone can’t fix it. It’s the structure of the government that needs to be wiped
Chicago has long lost it’s chance to become a global world city. It will remain a strong regional city, along with Atlanta, Houston, Boston and San Francisco.
Her house is protected by an army of cops. She thinks it is safe.
That’s exactly her perspective. I’m safe, so everyone else. Must be too ! She’s totally oblivious to the reality she’s created through her gross incompetence.think she’s going to leave? She’ll reimagine herself as a dangerous self righteous crusader. She knows why the carpets are so lumpy.
Gee, it’s almost like we could have predicted this a few years ago when demands to defund the police became so prevalent!
Just because Lightfoot is out doesn’t mean Chicago residents have learned their lesson. They haven’t elected anyone yet. One of the remaining two candidates would be even worse than Lightfoot. Let’s all wait another 1-2 months to see how this turns out.
I’m of the opinion that if the voters choose the wrong candidate this time, the city does not deserve to exist, and anyone sticking around in Chicago deserves to suffer the same fate as their city. As outsiders, we should resist the temptation to offer assistance or advice. Some voters need to learn the hard way.
Not just this election. Voters need to start owning their decisions and the outcomes that come with it. Until voters understand that every election is important, horrible outcomes will manifest.
There is a clear difference between the remaining two candidates. For a change, it’s not the lesser of two evils. Finally, Chicago voters can prove they have some level of intelligence (or not). If they can’t get it right this time, they never will.
What puzzles me is the deafening silence from the city’s titans, those who own the office towers, the chain restaurants, the banks and the commercial real estate. Would would assume that it is these urban titans who would feel the pain far more acutely. Take a look at 900 Michigan or Water Tower Place … retail ghost malls. I suspect that if and when these financial juggernauts ‘spoke up’ with a unified voice…. things would change. Until then, I suspect we’re on the road to become another Detroit or Baltimore.
What amazes me is the general ignorance of agenda 21, event 201, and agenda 2030. WEF puppets are traitors. Wake up !
The titans are afraid to speak loudly about this issue as it could deter tenants and customers from looking at Chicago. This in my opinion is a short-term view and will hurt the future of our once great city. These are now, now, now; me, me, me times.
They kowtow to politicians to gain favor for things such as zoning approvals, tax increment financing (TIF) deals, tax credits and other handouts. An example: Michael Reschke, CEO of Prime Group and owner of the Thompson Center, has two of six proposals in front of the mayor requesting $73M in TIF financing to convert offices to apartments/hospitality. What might be his chances of approval if he went vocal on the mayor and the local justice system? There are exceptions, of course, such as former Chicagoan Ken Griffin, but most are silent because they want to avoid the wrath of the… Read more »
Most are silent because there are none. The owners are multinational corporations, private equity, securitized bond holders, nationwide property management companies, few who live here.
Here’s why they don’t speak out, could have been much worse if different agencies got involved.
https://cwbchicago.com/2022/01/days-after-1-million-smash-and-grab-lightfoot-walked-out-of-meeting-with-idiot-luxury-car-dealer-then-a-city-inspector-showed-up-with-a-ticket-book.html
That story would be funny if it was so embarrassing for the mayor of the third largest city in the country. How petty. She must be taking lessons from AOC on how to drive businesses out of town.
Speaking of which, the Democrats don’t care if businesses leave Illinois – they tell ’em don’t let the door hit you on the way out.
They know that real estate taxes can be infinitely raised.
There are no more office tower or CRE titans. The buildings are owed by distant landlords, sometimes multinational insurance companies, other times the owners are nothing more securitized mortgage bonds sold to pension funds and investment firms around the globe, with nationwide property managers handling the day to day affairs on thousands of buildings. Brookfield, a multinational property investment firm, tossed the keys back to the lender at 900 N Michigan, another insurance MetLife Investment Management. None of these people care about Chicago. They’ll write off their losses and move on to something else and they could care less about… Read more »
Homicide is the cousin of the pro abortion party.
As much as it would make me feel good to think that BD Lori’s defeat was due to rampant crime that went unaddressed during her administration, there may be other contributing factors. Like the fact she is abrasive, unlikable and woke.
No doubt.
Ms. Lightfoot was such a HUGE disappointment. I understand she carried all 50 precincts in ’19 – only to be dumped in ’23.
She deserved to be dumped.
She claimed racism on the election loss. She conveniently forgetting that it was the lily white lakefront liberals who helped elect her last time! She was abrasive and not up to the job. Feeble minded excuse.
The most offensive public official Chicagoan have ever elected.