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Chicago Police Say Shootings, Murders Still On The Decline

CHICAGO (CBS) -- Police said shootings across Chicago dropped for the third consecutive month in May, but said more needs to be done to keep violent crime numbers moving in the right direction.

Chicago police said shootings were down about 14 percent overall through the end of May, with 1,068 so far this year, compared to 1,241 in the first five months of 2016.

In May alone, there were 56 homicides in Chicago, compared to 68 last May, a 17 percent decrease. Police said there also were 78 fewer shooting victims this May compared to last year, an 18 percent decline.

Police said the drop in crime was particularly steep in the Harrison and Englewood districts, where the department has set up new strategic decision support centers equipped with ShotSpotter systems and other new technology to help make decisions on deployment and operations.

The Englewood and Harrison districts saw a 35 percent decrease in shootings this past month, police said.

"The intelligence hubs, the strategic decision support centers, are telling our officers, based on previous data, where we should be and when we should be [there]. So putting officers in the right places at the right times, so that's really helping us," First Deputy Supt. Kevin Navarro said.

Police said a safer Memorial Day Weekend also made a difference, with a drop of nearly 30 percent in both shootings and murders.

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