Four people were killed and two teens were among 23 wounded in citywide shootings since this weekend. | Sun-Times file photo
At least 678 homicides were recorded in the city by the end of October, 17 more than this time last year, according to statistics released by the Chicago Police Department.
With two months to go, Chicago has already seen more murders than in eight of the last 10 years.
At least 678 homicides were recorded in the city by the end of October, 17 more than this time last year, according to statistics released by the Chicago Police Department on Monday.
Last year ended with at least 775 homicides, the most in the city since 1996. Chicago could come close to that toll this year, though the pace of killings slowed in October, according to the department.
At least 59 people were killed this October compared to 69 last October.
The number of shootings, however, has not slowed down. At least 356 people were shot in October, compared to 344 for the same month last year, the department said. For the year, at least 3,766 people have been shot compared to 3,443 this time last year.
The most violent year of the past 10 years is 2016, when at least 781 homicides were reported. Homicides dipped the next year, to at least 644, and continued to decline to 547 in 2018 and 501 in 2019 before spiking again.
There had been a similar decline before 2016: at least 435 homicides in 2011, 504 in 2012, 415 in 2013, 407 in 2014 and 478 in 2016.
For much of this year, homicides and shootings had been steadily increasing from last year. Of the city’s 72 neighborhoods, 50 are seeing either more homicides or about the same number as last year. Just 22 are faring better, according to Sun-Times data.
Many struggling neighborhoods continue to bear the brunt of violence: Austin, North Lawndale, Auburn-Gresham, West Garfield Park, West Pullman, South Shore, Roseland, Near West Side, South Lawndale and Washington Heights.
Over the last weekend, at least 28 people were hit by gunfire and six died. Four of those homicides occurred in police districts that cover some of these neighborhoods.
Two men were shot and killed early Saturday in Avondale on the Northwest Side. The two men, 28 and 26, were shot shot minutes after midnight in the 2700 block of West Belmont Avenue, Chicago police said. Both were taken to Illinois Masonic Medical Center and pronounced dead. Their names haven’t been released.
A man was killed in Austin on the West Side Saturday afternoon. The 26-year-old was in a car in the 900 block of South Monitor Avenue when he was stuck by gunfire, police said. The unidentified man was shot in the neck and taken to Loyola University Medical Center in Maywood, where he was pronounced dead.
A man was killed and another wounded in a drive-by Sunday morning in West Garfield Park. About 7 a.m., they were standing in the 400 block of South Kostner Avenue when a white car pulled up and someone inside started firing shots, police said. Keith Melton-McKinney, 56, was struck in his head and shoulder, authorities said. He died at Mount Sinai Hospital. The second man, 39, was struck twice in the shoulder and stabilized at Loretto Hospital.
A man was killed Sunday morning in Ukrainian Village. A man, about 30 years old, was found on the ground around 1 a.m. with a gunshot wound to the torso in the 900 block of North Damen Avenue, police said. He was taken to Stroger Hospital, where he died, police said. His name hasn’t been released.
Sunday morning, a woman was fatally shot in Gresham on the South Side. Kailah Bledsoe, 22, was shot by a woman who walked up to her around 10:30 a.m. in the 7600 block of South Morgan Street, police said. Bledsoe was struck in the face and taken to the University of Chicago Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead. No arrest was made.
A 15-year-old boy was shot Saturday afternoon in Gresham on the South Side. About 3:45 p.m., the 15-year-old was near an alley in the 7900 block of South Justine Street when he was shot in the chest, police said. The teen was taken to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn in serious condition, police said.
A 16-year-old boy was shot while waiting for a friend Friday night on the Near West Side. The teen was standing outside about 7:30 p.m. in the 300 block of South Western Avenue when someone in the back seat of a black Kia fired shots, police said. He was struck in the thigh and taken to Illinois Masonic Medical Center in good condition, police said.
A man was shot in his living room Sunday morning in Chicago Lawn on the South Side. The attack happened around 1:15 a.m. in the 6100 block of South Campbell Avenue. The 22-year-old was was shot in the shoulder and grazed in his head, police said. He was taken to Christ Medical Center in Oak Lawn in fair condition, police said.
At least 18 others were wounded in shootings in Chicago this weekend.
Last weekend, three people were killed and 26 others wounded in shootings in Chicago.
