As Cops Retreat Under Political Pressure, Chicago Homicides Rise 57 Percent

At WSJ, "Murder and Policing in Chicago":

As cops retreat under political pressure, homicides rise 57% in Chicago: https://t.co/6kphDZJnRY

— WSJ Editorial Page (@WSJopinion) January 3, 2017

Former Chicago Police Superintendent Garry McCarthy told CBS’s “60 Minutes” this weekend that the increase in paperwork has taken time away from proactive policing and made officers more reluctant to stop suspicious individuals. According to CBS, the number of stops declined from 49,257 in August 2015 to 8,859 a year later while arrests fell by a third to 6,900. While current Superintendent Eddie Johnson denied that police were retreating, he noted at a press conference this weekend that anger at police has “emboldened” criminals. He also blamed lax enforcement of Chicago’s strict antigun laws.

All of this suggests that the demonization of cops has contributed to Chicago’s surge of violence, with the principal victims being young minorities, many of them innocent bystanders. Perhaps the President could include an elegy for these black lives in his farewell.

RTWT.