Chicago Police Take 4,200 Guns Off Streets This Year
CHICAGO (CBS) -- Chicago police say more than 4,200 illegal guns have been taken off the streets so far this year.
Over 4,000 Illegal Guns Off Streets
In addition to getting guns off the streets, Chicago Police Supt. Garry McCarthy says the best way to have fewer shooters and fewer gun victims is to make it mandatory that anyone caught with an illegal gun goes to prison and serves at least 85 percent of their sentence.
WBBM Newsradio's Bernie Tafoya reports, McCarthy says the crime rate is already at its lowest point since 1965 and can get even better.
"We're at a breakthrough point, a tipping point, where could turn this thing in a direction this city has never seen," McCarthy said.
If there were mandatory punishments and truth-in-sentencing, Supt. McCarthy says 117 gun victims and shooters would have been prison and not on the street this year.
And to those who think society should not worry when criminals are killing each other, McCarthy says, "It's not okay," even if they are criminals.
He says "the bigger concern is that when that individual is going to retaliate and they fire into a crowd, and they always hit the wrong people."
