Watch CBS News

Chicago Murders Up 72 Percent In First Three Months Of Year

CHICAGO (CBS) -- After three months, Chicago is on pace for one of the deadliest years in more than a decade.

Through March, 141 people were murdered in the city, police said. That's a 72 percent increase compared with the 82 killings in 2015.

At that rate, the city in on pace for about 560 homicides, which would be the highest since 2003, when about 600 people were killed.

Shootings have also skyrocketed, from 359 incidents in 2015 to 677 so far this year.

The number of victims has nearly doubled: 800 this year, compared with 411 last year.

"While the rate of senseless violence in Chicago remains unacceptably high, the pace of violence slowed down in March, compared to January and February of this year," according to a statement from Chicago Police. "Additionally, several metrics show an increase in police activity this past month, including an increase of gun arrest by nearly 10 percent as well as investigative stops that are up by 30 percent."

In March, murders rose by 29 percent, compared to increases of 75 percent and 126 percent in January and February, respectively.

Overall, the month of March saw 45 murders, 271 shootings, and 319 shooting victims.

View CBS News In
CBS News App Open
Chrome Safari Continue
Be the first to know
Get browser notifications for breaking news, live events, and exclusive reporting.